Destined To Him
by tiibouchina
Summary: Sookie came back from Faery to a sight she hadn't expected; a young woman sitting on her porch surrounded by travel cases. A woman swearing to protect her. A woman Eric didn't know he'd been expecting for over a thousand years. Eric/OC, some minor Pam/OC, M for adult themes, language and violence. Post S03
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Ok, this is something I've been writing for fun. It's my first story ever, so go easy on the rookie.  
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**This is a story about Eric and my OC, Lina Collett. It is not a love at first sight, feel-good romance. Lina is not an innocent little girl and Eric will not be her white knight in shining armor. It is an explosive, passionate, and slightly disturbing romance about love that knows no boundaries and takes time to develop until the HEA. I wrote my OC as a strong, capable woman with her own set of weaknesses, because it's necessary for this type of story line. You'll see :)  
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**I'm not telling how it's all going to play out, but there will be more fairies involved and less stupid decisions made about witches kept alive when they should burn. There will also be a few things taken from SVM such as Niall (now Sookie's great great grandfather) and some Claude. Although it's an Eric/OC story, there will be no Sookie bashing or extreme hating on Bill. They have their own role.**

**I love my OC (portrayed in my profile pic, young Charlize Theron) and I hope you'll enjoy this story as much as I like writing it.**

**(Sorry for the grammar if it sucks.. there's no beta and English is only my third language after Finnish and Swedish.)**

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**CHAPTER 1**

A single taxi with darkened windows drove to the front of the Stackhouse family home at one p.m. in the middle of the hottest fall ever seen in Bon Temps, Louisiana. The sun was shining brightly with no cloud in sight and the humidity made the air heavy and burning hot. The driver was exhausted after a long drive since the early morning and was dripping sweat as he banged his fist on the air-conditioning that had died already somewhere outside of New Orleans.

He was a bit embarrassed about his sweaty, stinky condition because of the pretty lady in the backseat. Fortunately, she hadn't said a word or didn't look too disgusted by him while sitting in the shadows staring out of the window with large sunglasses hiding her eyes from his view. She had looked filthy rich and that was the only reason he had agreed to drive all the way from New Orleans to this godforsaken little town nearly 350 miles away. He could only hope his wife saved him some dinner back home.

"We're here, Miss."

Lina Collett looked at the big house at the end of the road with curiosity. It was a two-story house with large windows and a cute little garden in the front. The house had fresh paint hiding all the should-be-there marks of aging and every corner of the home seemed well taken care of. It was very much the Southern family home she had pictured in her mind, but only in far better condition than expected. After all, the owner had been absent for a year.

Lina unrolled the sleeves of her blazer and put on a large sun hat and white gloves before she thanked the taxi driver, paid him handsomely and got out of the car. The driver was a bit of the enthusiastic sort. He was already out of the car sprinting towards the rear ready to get her bags out. She let him. She was more interested in the crowd running in an out of the house carrying supplies.

_Construction workers, that's kind of odd_, she thought.

What she'd heard from Niall, her grandfather, the Stackhouse family didn't own very much. The parents of the girl she was here for had died a long time ago leaving the two children to the care of their grandmother. Had the older brother struck gold miraculously and started to renovate their old home?

She got the bags from the driver and kissed his cheek making him blush. Then she took hold of all the six pieces of luggage much to the driver's amazement and took long strides to the front porch of the home. The shadow of the wide porch was very much welcomed in this heat. She didn't think she could survive it much longer without taking refuge in the house. Her right ear was already bleeding.

Her real name was Aislinn Collett-Brigant, but she usually went by the name of Lina Collett. Mentioning the name of her grandfather Niall usually caused her more trouble than gained any admiration. Also, she didn't need to use her full name to remind herself of her roots and whom she owed loyalty. She was a passionate, courageous, tenacious woman, who'd now just like many times before put everything important in her own life on hold to be here for her family. This time the family in question included someone she had heard about only recently. The part human part fairy cousin also referred to as the dirty little secret of Fintan.

Lina Collett was a fairy. More specifically, she was the only female fairy to live in this dimension and had been that for over 250 years. Or at least that was what she had thought, until she heard of Sookie Stackhouse.

Or if she could even call herself one of her own kind anymore after one fatal night in 1757.

For 256 years she had been something that shouldn't exist. She was a vampire. A full-blooded fairy turned vampire. A disgrace to her race. A cautionary tale for little girls and boys.

How she had gotten into that particular condition, she didn't want to reminisce. It wasn't something to be proud of.

Lina approached the front door and looked at the doorframe. She gingerly tried to push her foot inside the house fully expecting to be stopped from entering a human's home. So, imagine her surprise, when her heel touched the brand new floorboard and she found herself standing inside the Stackhouse mansion. It wasn't a good sign.

"Hey lady! What are you doing here? This is a private property!"

A middle aged bald man rushed behind her and tried to turn her around to face him. When she did and lifted her sunglasses, he gasped. Lina's face wasn't something men could easily ignore.

She raised an eyebrow. "Yes, I'm aware. My name is Lina Collett, the representative of the Stackhouse family. I would like to see your work permission on this estate."

"Ma'am, I'm sorry, but the work is not commissioned by any Stackhouse. As far as I know the Stackhouses sold the house months ago and the new owner is renovating. If you ask me, it was about the fucking time. The place was rotting apart. Oh, excuse my French."

"_De rien_," she smoothly responded. "Who's the new owner?"

"I don't remember ma'am."

"Then I'll advice you to find out and call them, because you and your crew are leaving this house now until I know exactly what is going on here."

"Look lady we've got work to do and a paycheck to collect."

She leaned down and stopped just before the man's face. Her long lashes almost brushed his own as she whispered "I don't care. Leave now."

The man fought against feeling intimidated by this young woman and bit his cheek in anger. "Fine! We're calling the cops!"

"Oh please do," she sniggered. "You have two minutes. Make haste."

She watched with amusement as all the workers threw her a nasty sneer and finally shut the door behind them. The big house became quiet.

She kind of liked the renovations the new supposed owner was making. His/her taste was good. Sookie's home looked like every modern Southern girl's dream with big antique furniture and high-end electronic set ups. She didn't mind spending a few months in this heat, if it was going to be this cozy.

Lina had flown from Paris to be here to safeguard her cousin's wellbeing during the war that raged among her kind between the two realms. Breandan had started a war against Niall and one of his sick plans included taking out every progeny born out of a fairy-human affair. Sookie was Niall's soft spot and he wanted her protected.

Enter Lina. It was a job assigned to her, but she took it gladly. Protecting her family amidst a crisis was among her top priorities and she had a feeling she was going to like this girl even if she hadn't even heard of her before. There couldn't be too many friends or allies in this world, when you were something as exotic as Lina.

Although still unique in her existence, she actually was the second one of her kind. Before her time, an old female vampire of approximately 2000 years had found a fairy wounded in the forest. What happened was that in her blood haze the old vampire attacked the fairy with every intention of sucking him dry, but failed to register that she wasn't alone in the woods that night. Like a lion fighting another for the last hunk of meat in the prairie, another vampire younger than her charged. The fight didn't last long, but the sudden unwanted distraction had cleared her mind for a while. She had found something valuable in the fairy. She decided to try and make the delicious blood last. Sadly, after 50 years of successfully turning his new boy toy, he was killed by a rumored accident in the bedroom. His addictive blood was to blame.

Death from throes of passion, yeah, not going to happen with Lina. It was because of this other one before her she even was in this fanged condition. It was because her maker encountered the old female's fairy vampire lover and became envious of her that he had sought Lina out by trailing Irish and British lands for decades. One night he just got lucky, and poor Lina got herself a maker.

Her blood was called an aphrodisiac. Fairy blood induced a strong high like inebriation, but a vampire high on sangre de Lina was like a vampire high on strong ecstasy. Therefore, there were some strict rules in Lina's sex life. 1. No blood play. 2. Everything else goes. 3. Except for iron or silver cuffs. Usually she also steered clear from other vampires, especially male ones with more strength that her. They tended to get a weeny bit too aggressive.

Lina walked into the kitchen, which was filled with brand new appliances. Everything was so new, new, new. And clean. A picture in the wall stopped her. It was of an old woman smiling from her heart. She had wrinkles that showed beautifully, when she laughed and eyes that held wisdom and kindness in them. Her hair was gray and came down on soft curls stopping at what she could guess was mid-back. Lina had always wondered what possessed human women in the age of 35 to cut off their locks. Did their career demand them to look like men or did their hair grow thin and uncontrollable?

This woman in the picture was a beauty. She had to be the kind grandmother taking care of his grandchildren in the face of tragedy.

Suddenly Lina smelled something strange and definitely out of place. It was an all too familiar, salty and metallic scent coming from the refrigerator. She opened the door and the bloody discovery sitting on the middle shelf made Lina pucker her lips.

_I very much doubt that is there for my benefit_, she wondered and closed the door.

A vampire living in Sookie's house. _Fan-damn-tastic_. A curious feeling filled her, when she realized it was still afternoon and that the said vampire might be lying out cold somewhere in the house right that passing second. She decided to do some digging.

She might preserve the vampire's life or might not depending on how her mood was when she found him/her. No recent scent in the air. None in the kitchen. The blood must have been lying there for about a few days at least.

The living room had a huge closet in it that was carved from beautiful mahogany, but in the recent light it looked suspicious.

_Ta-da_. The sleeping quarters. But the vampire must be spending the day somewhere else or who the hell would leave the door unlocked while lying vulnerable. A vampire that wanted to die of stupidity, that's who. If he indeed was lying there Lina might be forced to end his idiocy. _His_, as it definitely couldn't be a she.

Empty. Less blood on her hands then. Someone had used it though, but no distinct scent was left behind. She was so going to take up this space, but she had to hire some constructors of her own. More metal to that door and some silver bars and a combination lock. She could touch silver for a while before it became torturous. Iron was her kryptonite.

She didn't bother taking the ladder back inside, but floated up until she stepped out in the living room once again.

Lina had been able to control air and gravity around her since she was a small child. She could lift up any object or how many objects she wanted with her mind, if she was able to hold eye contact. It was a handy skill against your enemies, but it also was extremely strenuous and she needed blood shortly after using her skill extensively. Tonight she would need a whole lot because of her little basking in the sunlight stunt.

Her skill was a fairly common fairy power, whereas telepathy was something else. She intended to learn everything there was about her cousin's skill. Maybe they could swap stories on how they both undoubtedly scared their family and friends out of their wits when toys started flying or how Sookie knew how mommy liked to be treated in the bedroom. Poor Sookie, it must've been painful to grow up.

Lina decided to go back on the porch and wait for her new friend. She dug out her iPad and went through her messages.

She had spent large amount of her time recently finalizing a show for the dance group she owned and now, she had to leave right before the premier. Her dance group of 20 talented performers was stationed in Paris and performed only to an exclusive audience 2 nights per week in a less kinky cabaret bar she half owned with her cousins Claude and Frans. The infamous club _Dessert_. The group also went on tours, and the tickets were always sold out a year in before hand. Yeah, she and her crew were that good. Their forte was modern jazz and dramatic contemporary, but they also did a lot of routines of street dance and Latin American spices. Dance was, what she was the most passionate about. Dance was her.

If she wasn't rehearsing with her group or searching for a new talent at clubs and dance auditions around Europe, she visited Asia and more accurately Tokyo, where she had served as an enforcer of the Queen Meng Xi in 1800-1930. She frequently returned to her _sensei_ to assist her in small jobs around Asia weeding out threats to Meng's peace. Meng was more than her empress. She was her mentor, her mother hen. She was the one woman Lina equally feared, respected and loved. Lina owed her her life.

After spending decades under her wing, Lina left her _sensei_ before the World War II started and dragged her best friend, Isibil, with her and traveled to India, Austria and Germany before settling in France to reap the benefits of the uplifted mood of ending war and the victorious battle of Normandy. People had thirsted for entertainment. They still do.

It had been a while since she set her foot on American soil. She hoped it wouldn't come and bite her in the ass.

A police car drove up the road. A young looking deputy with some very handsome features leaped out of the vehicle and took determined steps towards her.

"Police, Ma'am. You've been asked to leave the property," his young voice said. Then the man stopped and stared. "Holy shit, I mean goddamn," she heard him whisper. Less determined steps followed. "Errr, Miss I'm sorry to disturb you now, but some construction guys called us at the station and said they need to continue their work and there was some lady that drove them away earlier."

His badge said STACKHOUSE. Oh goody, the boy Stackhouse.

"I know, I'm very sorry," Lina responded and tilted her head to examine him better.

"That's okay really, if you'd follow me now to the station to clear this up…"

"I'm here for your sister, Jason," Lina interrupted and smiled sweetly.

He looked baffled. Like something didn't quite register.

"Look Miss, I don't know how you know my sister, or how she knows you or why I haven't ever seen a lady like you before, but she's gone. I'm sorry…. But how did you know my name? Did Sookie tell you?"

"No. I haven't met Sookie before. But I'm going to in a few hours. You too, Jason." She knew she sounded like a lunatic, but it was too tempting to tease the boy. Her kind loved their little games and she was no exception.

"Sookie's been gone over a year. I think you're going to be disappointed. Let's get you out of here, shall we?" He tried to offer her a helping hand like she had lost all her marbles.

"No, why don't you let me sit here for a while and come back to see me and Sookie in about two hours?"

"Err, what if I wait with you? A pretty lady like yourself shouldn't spend time on her own like this," he offered gallantly.

"Nah, I'll be just sitting here. You go ahead."

Jason scratched his head and looked around seeing nobody else and detecting nothing presumably weird going on.

"Ok, well, I guess the men were wrapping up anyway. You sure you don't want to leave with me now?"

She nodded. "She'll be here, Jason."

"Ok then. I'll come back in a couple of hours and you'll need me to give you a ride somewhere. Do you know where you're staying the night? I guess I've got some room you know, you're always welcomed."

"That very sweet Jason, but I'm staying here," she smiled and batted her lashes.

"Yeah, ok. Yeah, well, I'll come back for you. You'll be okay here? Bye now." He looked once more over his shoulder worried about the pretty coocoo woman on the porch, when he walked back to his car and finally drove away.

Lina's phone buzzed. "_She's safely out_. _Only about an hour to go, dear. –N_".

She leaned down on her knees as she sat and waited.


	2. Chapter 2

**CHAPTER 2**

Almost exactly one year after her disappearance from Bon Temps Sookie marched out of the cemetery wiping her eyes. She had just lost her grandfather all over again. He had withered in front of her like a flower into dust, like his life force was sucked out of him. She had already cried these tears once, but it didn't help the pain of her loss. Her grandpa had lost twenty years of her growing up, and now there wasn't a chance for him to live those lost years ever again. She could only hope he was now, where Grams is and they weren't alone.

She tightened her grip on the clock in her hand, which was the only proof he had even been there. That she had even seen the land of fairies, her other kin and family.

She scoffed. What a joke of a family! Your real cousins didn't try to set you on fire or didn't murder your grandpa. Fairies were as evil as vampires and just as power hungry and hateful. She didn't belong with them not now or ever. She wanted nothing to do with them ever again. She would leave her fairy powers and stick to normal human life, if that is what it took. It wasn't like she needed her unstable microwave hands on a daily basis. More like on a weekly basis, when someone new decided to be after her blood.

"Well go ahead the next freaking monster in the line, come and get me," she muttered to herself. She could take them.

Sookie was up to her neck with the supernatural. Bill was a betraying son of a bitch, so he was definitely gone too. He had made her fall in love with him and trust him with her life. She had given all of herself to him in her bed and, what is worse, buried him deep in her heart. She agreed to marry him and had gone out of her way to save him. What hadn't she given him? In return, her first ever boyfriend was using her like a pawn in the sick vampire game of power.

Now Sookie longed to get between blankets on her sofa and eat a ton of ice cream. The next day she would leave everything that is shit behind her and finally she would move on.

It hurt her to think about letting Bill go. Hurt her like nothing ever had.

This day sucked ass.

She walked right to the front entrance of her house, but then she came to a halt. Her eyes widened.

There sitting on her porch was indeed the next stranger waiting for her like she had joked, but she definitely wasn't the monster after her blood that Sookie had pictured in her head, although appearances could always be deceiving.

_Just like Bill_.

The stranger was just sitting there with a bunch of large travel cases next to her. She was a blond woman in her twenties dressed in jeans and a black long sleeved blazer. Under the blazer she seemed to have a light white top and around her neck was a golden beautiful piece of jewelry that accentuated her slightly bronze skin tone. She looked like she was ready for an afternoon walk down the beach promenades of French Riviera.

The woman was staring at Sookie intently, but didn't make a single move to greet her. On a stranger note, she didn't even seem to breathe. She was so still that Sookie got scared she might be a vampire, if only that wasn't a ludicrous thought with the sun high in the sky scorching down brightly. Nevertheless, Sookie decided it would be best, if she just stood a good few meters away from her.

She took in her visitor. Quickly her stare morphed into a down right gape.

It was the woman's face that drew her in. She was obviously beautiful, but that wasn't the reason you would stop and stare at her completely transfixed, which Sookie did. Her features were nothing like she had ever seen before. Her mouth was full and inviting that could make men lose their heads. They would endlessly yearn to know, how it would feel to have those lips on them. Even Sookie wondered, if her kiss would be the softest thing after cotton. It could be like cotton candy.

But nothing in that face said _cotton candy_ or even _sweet_ in any way. Her cheekbones were high and her neck was long. She had grace, like a swan. But these things would be fast forgotten, when you caught her eyes. They were blue, but Sookie thought that there was a tint of grey in them that made her eyes seem as hard as steel. Her gaze was penetrating and Sookie couldn't help, but feel herself suddenly very self-conscious. It was like the woman was analyzing her. Not only would she be intimidating in the looks department, but also it was the way she took in everything around her that made her damn right overwhelming.

_Just like Eric_, she thought.

Sookie wondered, what could ever happen, if those two took part in a staring competition. Something could explode from the intensity of that particular shake down. Could those two even be in the same room without scaring the bejesus out of everyone else?

Intense, yes! That was the word to describe her.

Sookie watched her more closely. There wasn't anything blatantly sinister about the woman. No doubt she could tear out her guts in less than 0,5 seconds, but she didn't radiate craziness or absurd violence like Lorena did. She was calm, collected and heartbreakingly beautiful.

There was nothing cute about the lady, and pretty seemed like a word used too lightly to describe her. Sookie was convinced she was a fairy. She got to be to have looks like that.

The woman rose on her feet and started walking towards Sookie. She wasn't exactly tall. Thank God for that, because she certainly didn't need insane height to make others cower. She moved effortlessly, like she was gliding instead of walking, but that wasn't anything new about fairies. They owned the fluent way of motion. That is why they love dancing and make others look like fools with two left feet. When she reached her, her face completely shifted. Suddenly there was warmth in those eyes and her expression softened. Still no cuteness in her though, Sookie thought. She smiled more like saying that she accepts you and welcomes you, but come the day you betray her, it's going to hurt.

"Mmm, hi?" Sookie smiled nervously.

"Hi. You must be Sookie. I've been waiting for you to appear out of thin air about 3 hours," her smile widened. "I am Aislinn, your new guardian angel. Or personal bitch for a long time to come, if you prefer. But call me Lina," She offered Sookie her hand, which Sookie took cautiously. Her hands were a bit cold but not freezing like Bill's. But then again vampires never shook hands.

"What? What do you mean by guardian angel? Are you an actual angel? …I… I don't need any guarding." Sookie demanded. The Lina person just smiled at her.

"I will explain everything to you, don't worry. And no, not an angel. Far from it," Lina laughed softly. Her laughter was kind of cute, kind of. She couldn't be a human. Humans didn't have this air of calmness.

"You a fairy?" Sookie suddenly hissed. Yes she is a fairy and therefore no way this woman was a nice person. "Your family tried to finish me off just about 5 minutes ago. Are you here to end what they started? Well just go ahead and have a good try!" She tried to hide her discomfort and seem strong, but the Lina woman just smiled.

"Shh, no need to be shouting now is there? I'm a fairy… something, but those you met are not my family. You could say semi close relatives, but definitely not my blood. So yes, I'm a fairy, Sookie, but I'm not here to harm you. Quite the opposite." She reached out her hand to cup Sookie's chin. "We have much more in common that you could think. But I'll tell you all about it, when we get you and me safely inside. The sun is starting to affect me." She raised the sleeve of her blazer for Sookie to see. Her skin was blotched with light red marks, which couldn't have been pleasant. Sookie decided to trust this woman for a little while more at least.

"Oh, of course! Come quick!" Sookie ran up the stairs and through the door.

Then she stopped on her tracks.

"What the hell?"

She ran frantically around the house. Nothing made sense. This was her house, Grams house, but what had happened? All the furniture was new and there were absolutely no signs of the havoc that Maryanne wreaked to her beautiful home. All the walls were patched up with new tapestry and everything smelled fresh.

"Yeah. I was kind of wondering, if you knew who could have ordered 10 construction workers and indoor furnishers to swarm around your house while you were on your little visit to Faery? Don't worry they're gone now. I shooed them on their way," Lina said from behind her. She was leaning against the kitchen frame pointing at the new shiny refrigerator. "Plus, there's blood in there."

"WHAT?! Not in a million years!" Sookie shouted and yanked the fridge door open. There sitting on the middle shelf was a single carafe filled with blood. Definitely not TruBlood.

"Gross..."

She grabbed the carafe and marched to the sink to get rid of the offensive liquid, but a hand stopped her before the blood could spill down the drain.

"Let me take care of it," Lina winked.

Sookie stared at her confused.

"I don't understand. What's happened in here? I was gone for about an hour and somebody did this?! What kind of magic is this?!" she shrieked. She was opening the cupboards relieved to see the few antiques they had still there. What if everything in Gram's jewelry box were stolen?

Lina looked apologetic. "Sookie why don't you sit down before you give yourself brain hemorrhage."

Sookie huffed, took a chair and crossed her arms. "If you did this, you will pay. Explain."

Lina only narrowed her eyes, which was a clear mark for Sookie to shut up now. "Cool down. The place looks nice. I think you'll manage." Before the other girl could start another protestation round, she continued. "You have been gone an hour you say, but there is something you must know. Sookie, you were in the land of Faery. It is a world completely separate from the Earth you and I currently live in. Consider it as another dimension coexisting with ours. There are many things including the laws of nature that are different between the two worlds, but what matters the most to us is time."

Sookie's eyes widened. "Time? What do you mean time? Like another time zone? I'm pretty sure I left here during the night and now it's daytime, so that is kind of freaky," she laughed. "I've never traveled far, but now I'll get the infamous jetlag."

Lina looked grim. "Faery is far. Sookie, there's no good way of telling this so you'd not panic, so I'm just going to say it. You left about an hour ago or that is how you remember the time passing. Actually, you were gone a year."

Sookie's face took the same expression that Lina had seen on Jason just hours ago. The look of utter confusion. "Excuse me?!"

"I'm sorry."

Sookie just stared at the blond fairy. She couldn't process what she'd heard. A year? A whole fucking year? That's insane, and not true.

"What? No. No that's not true."

Suddenly there was a loud bang, when the front door flew open. "LADY? SOOKIE? YA HERE SIS?! GOOD… BLOND… LADY?!"

Jason came in wearing the same uniform as before. His face was panicked, when he barged into the kitchen.

"SOOK. OH HELL. Thank you blond lady thank you. Sook oh my god you're ok," he ranted and hugged his sister tight.

"Jason. Of course I'm ok. What's the matter? Why are you dressed like a cop?"

Her brother took in her face looking for any damages. "Jesus Christ, we all thought you were dead! We've been looking all over for you. We figured a vampire must have did it." Lina rolled her eyes. "Bill or maybe that crazy tall one. Where the hell have you been Sook?"

_So, Sookie does hang out with vampires_. _And not just any vampires, Bill? As in Bill Compton the King of Louisiana? That's just great_, Lina thought.

"A place," Sookie looked nervously at Lina, who was smiling encouragingly at her. She thought the two were sweet. "Hold on, Jason, what's today's date?"

"Today is October 21st."

"I've been gone two weeks?" Sookie asked incredulously.

Jason looked uncomfortable and stammered. "Sook, you've been gone for twelve and a half months."

"No," she looked again at Lina.

The fairy vampire was sorry for her. It must be terrible to hear news like this. And when she's finally fine with it, Lina had some more crappy news to tell her.

"Why don't we go back to the kitchen and have a seat, hmh?" she said to the siblings. Sookie would need to sit down for this ride.

Sookie and Jason warily followed her back to the kitchen and sat at the opposite ends of the table. Jason grabbed Sookie's hands in his.

"You sold my house?" Sookie asked.

"Your stuff's still here. I packed it, but I didn't get a chance to…"

"Yeah," Sookie snapped. "I saw."

"Well at least I didn't throw it away! Sook, you had been gone a year. I only learned today that you might be coming back from that lady over there. I thought she was nuts by the way, no offense," he laughed nervously.

"None taken," Lina winked and smiled.

Jason lost his thought and stared at her mouth. "What was your name again?" he mumbled.

"Call me Lina."

"Lina, good to meet a nice lady like yourself," he said smiling widely and yelped, when Sookie squeezed his hand hard.

"Who bought the house, Jason?" Sookie continued.

"Umm.. a real estate company with a bunch of initials. AIK, I think?"

Lina had never heard of that before, but the owner shouldn't be too hard to track. The place had to be bought back as soon as possible.

"Look, they had the cash and were paying more than I was asking. I just wanted to be done with it," Jason sighed.

"No worries there. I'll find them. I'll be glad to buy it back for your family," Lina said and sat down beside Sookie.

Sookie stared at her mouth open. "What? You could do that?"

"Why not. It's not exactly safe that we don't know, who the owner is. We can only hope that it's a human." Which she knew was not the case. "I have the cash."

Sookie and Jason stared at her.

"Are you some kind of a movie star?" Jason blurted.

Lina smiled broadly. "No. The money has just been piling over the years. I'd be glad to help."

"We don't need help," Sookie snapped. "I still don't understand the half of this!"

"Yes you do need help, Sookie. And it would only be fair as one of your last remaining relatives to chip in."

"You.. you're related to us somehow?" Sookie asked her eyes bugging out. Jason looked only disgruntled.

"I'm something of a cousin to you. A distant one. Sookie, I need to tell you why I'm here, because it's dangerous for you to not know any longer. Do you want Jason to hear the story?"

"Hey, hey, hey now. I'm the law enforcement here. If there's something going on, I need to hear it."

Sookie looked at her brother. "I still can't believe you're a cop."

"Okay then," Lina said. "The deputy stays."

She told Sookie and Jason about fairy monarchies and the events that led to the situation at hand. Breandan had always been the most ambitious and ruthless of the princes. He used the people's desperation in the face of their infertility and led them to believe the human-fairy affairs had ruined their blood. To falsely find salvation in their despair, he now intended to wipe out every living fairy hybrid there was. Including Lina. That particular witch-hunt had started the day she drew her last breath as a pure blooded fairy.

"So you really were in the land of fairies? People there tried to kill you?" Jason asked.

Sookie nodded sadly. She took the pocket watch and placed it on the table.

"I saw granddaddy. He was there the whole time. He wanted you to have it. He swore he'd only been there a few hours. Jason, he looked just how we remember him."

Jason turned the watch in his hands scratching the writing inside.

"What time you got?" he asked trying to fix the thing.

"Six thirty-five..." Sookie trailed. Then she fell silent and glanced at the front door. "Which means…" She took the first few steps towards it, when she felt a hand stop her once again.

"You're expecting company?" Lina asked watching her sternly. "Mr. Bill Compton might be coming?"

"Well, yeah… yeah. I'd think so. I've had his blood and he could read my emotions, so he should know I'm back."

"If he shows, do not in any case tell him that I'm here. Not a word. I'll wait here with Jason, but keep him outside, if possible."

"But why?"

"I haven't reported my stay yet. It's not a bad thing, but it's not a good thing either."

"Why would Bill care, if you're here?" Sookie asked confusion written over her face.

Lina studied her for a moment trying to decide, if the girl will freak. But then again, people with long canines weren't exactly news to her. She tilted her head back, thought of the human blood waiting for her at the counter and revealed her fangs.

Both Stackhouses leapt backwards.

"HOLY SHIT!" Jason yelled.

"Hush, I'll explain."

"You're a vampire?! Oh my God!" Sookie screeched.

"Sookie please hush," Lina pleaded, just before she heard a voice from outside. One person.

"Sookie?" the voice asked quietly. Lina furiously nodded to her to go outside and fast.

For a moment the girl only stared at her completely dazed, but then she shook her head and ran outside to meet her man. She handled the fangs surprisingly well.

Jason had his mouth hanging open. "Please don't kill me, please?" he whispered.

"Don't be silly," Lina whispered back trying to listen to the conversation outside. Not a word about her thus far. Good girl Sookie. She didn't need the King here demanding to know, why she's in the house. She would handle him later.

She walked to the counter and raised the carafe of blood onto her lips. No reason hiding it now. And she was thirsty.

Another _swoosh_. There were now two vampires outside concerned for Sookie.

Interesting.

She heard the name Eric. It could be the Sheriff Eric Northman of Area 5 - the one she had to report to. Bill didn't sound too pleased to have him here, and he was busy barking orders to his Sheriff, who in turn sounded a little cocky. Lina grinned. Could there be a good old love triangle going on? That would be entertaining to follow during her stay.

A car approached. They all heard a police siren. Lina looked at Jason, who shook his head.

"Well go to them, deputy," she whispered to him and he shot up from his chair.

Lina took a seat at the kitchen counter casually sipping the blood and wondered how she was going to propose the next thing she wanted Sookie to do.

_Sookie, you thirsty?_ No.

_Drink my blood, Sookie_. No.

_Sookie, my blood is the best drug known to any creature. Have some?_ Guess not.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Now things start to get interesting.. Don't worry if this chapter reveals things that are weird and not explained properly. All in good time. Thank you for your support! It means the world.**

* * *

**CHAPTER 3**

Sookie came back inside, when Lina had moved to the living room sofa and rested her legs on the table.

"I need a minute." Sookie said and buried her face in her hands.

"Have two."

Sookie breathed hard. Perhaps a bit too hard, Lina marked. She didn't remember if this was how panic attacks started. They had something to do with breathing.

"Come on take a seat. The sofas are nice and fluffy," she patted the spot next to her. The other girl took small wobbly steps and crashed down face first. Humans were always feeling each other's foreheads, when the other felt bad. Lina tried to mimic that.

"You're going to live with me now?" Sookie mumbled to the cushion.

"Yes."

"A fairy vampire roomie. Great."

"Hey, I'll make it so good that you'll actually miss me, when I'm gone. Pillow fights at eight, guy gossip at nine." She noticed Sookie glancing at the windows every once in a while. "Don't worry Sookie, I'm good at what I do and the threat isn't even here. It's in Faery."

"Good. I hope it stays there. Dangerous things have an annoying habit of following me like magnets."

"Yeah, so I've heard. Sookie, seriously, werewolves?"

"Some of them are nice. Like Alcide. You might actually like him. He's hotter than blue blazes you know," Sookie smiled.

"No amount of hotness is going to cover that stench." Lina wrinkled her nose. "You should know how they really smell and you wouldn't spend a moment too long with them."

"Well yeah. I guess not all of them are nice. Alcide is actually the only werewolf I know that is not addicted to V and bat shit crazy because of it."

Sookie told Lina about the recent drama in Mississippi that had driven her to the hands of werewolves and a 3000-year-old vampire king. She told her about Bill and his betrayal. She told her about his maker. It seemed like the girl was dying to spill her guts to someone no matter how much a stranger, like Lina. Her heart ached.

She told her about Eric feeding her his blood and then turning his back to her, when it was convenient for him and when Sookie's and her best friend Tara's life was threatened. She told her about her brother's crazy crusades with the Fellowship, the explosion and her exhaustion. All this had happened in a year's time. It was nuts.

"It's never going to end, is it?" Sookie asked and curled to a ball on the sofa.

"I guess not. But at least there's one good thing. And it's major." Lina too was slouching on the couch trying to take in everything she learned. She raised her hand lazily. "There's now two of us in this shit. And we watch each other's back. Right?"

Sookie took the hand and squeezed it. "Right." They fell into a companionable silence contemplating all that's happened and what's to come. Then Sookie propped up on her elbow. "Why haven't I seen you in Faery all the times I've briefly visited it?"

Sookie watched as something close to pain flashed on Lina's face. It was gone as quickly as it came, when she covered it with a scowl.

"I live here now. I don't go there anymore."

"Why? It's your home, isn't it?"

"It is," she said. Her face lost all softness. Her blue-grey eyes were once again cold as steel.

"I accessed Faery a few times in my sleep. I met Claudine. Maybe you could…"

"Maybe someday I will tell you my story and answer your questions. But not today." She knew her new charge flinched at her tone, but she couldn't help it. It was a closed topic.

Lina couldn't tell her how her own people were now afraid of her. How she was threatened never to access the Portals even if she ever found one. The people she once called family had narrowed down to Niall and a few of her cousins. Her parents haven't contacted her ever since the light in her died.

"It'll also do you good to remember I'm a vampire now," she schooled Sookie, although she herself was still struggling how to live with that fact. She had long ago wondered if it was the all-consuming powers of light and darkness inside her that refused to give her peace. The two opposite forces battled against each other and exhausted her. Living felt like balancing on a knife's edge. Some day she will fall from that edge and see the darkness take over. What it'll do to her, she didn't know. What happens to a creature born from light, when all the light is lost? Her hand instinctively found the gruesome ragged scars still adorning the left side of her neck. The mark of darkness that refused to vanish from her skin even after her change.

Sookie noticed the large scars, but was too afraid to say anything. The silence between them was no longer companionable. She tried to break it. "Lina, when you're not protecting your cousins or intimidating the hell out of us normal folks, what do you do? You know I'm a waitress."

"I dance."

"You dance? Seriously. You're good?"

"Yeah, I guess. I own a dance group in Europe. The Europe's most prestigious one after Bolshoi ballet, if I may say so," a small smile found its way back on her face. Bolshoi was full of skinny little bitches compared to her team. Bolshoi had the pretentious, but Lina's _Mirage _had the talented. "I can show you some videos later on."

"That would be great."

Then Lina remembered she had a job to do. "Now Sookie, I have something to ask of you. I'm willing to bet you won't like it, but it is kind of necessary."

Sookie went from relaxed to wary in less than a millisecond. Lina too was feeling a bit apprehensive. She wasn't good with first times. And this was definitely going to be a first.

"What?"

"You have to know I don't do this normally. Actually I've never done it before so I'm kind of nervous too, but it's the only way to keep you safe. If during the day somebody attacks you or kidnaps you or whatever malicious thing, it's the only way for me to come rescue you. You should..."

"Have your blood. I get it. How do we do it?"

Lina's eyes widened as she took in Sookie's sincerity and determination.

"And here I had an entire speech prepared. You really are gutsy, huh?" She waited to see, if it was a bluff.

"No, I get it. Gimme the wrist."

Sookie was brave. Lina couldn't but be proud of her determination of getting things done and out of the way so she could focus on life. She appeared to be very warm hearted and seemed to make decisions based on what was the right thing to do. There was an alarming amount of naivety about her, but that didn't bother Lina. She too had been naïve once, and now she would do anything and everything to wipe her memories of 250 years and go back to that ignorant silly girl she once had been.

But there was something the two girls still had in common. Everything that had happened to them hadn't come close to breaking them.

"So eager." Lina said rubbing the artery on her wrist nervously figuring out how to do this. "I think you should climb on my lap or something. Would that be comfortable to you?"

"Err… I guess?" Sookie climbed between Lina's legs and sat there awkwardly. This was how Bill used to feed her.

"Okay… Here we go. Remember only a half a mouthful, Sookie. It will be enough. I don't really know what's going to happen so…" She hated being this clueless. It wasn't a feeling her badass vampire self rejoiced having. It was annoying and completely discouraging.

Lina lifted her wrist on her lips and her fangs snapped into attention. She felt utterly idiotic drawing in a calming breath before sinking the teeth into her artery. Son of bitch that hurt. She went too deep and it was not a neat cut. Her lips were smeared with her own blood when large droplets started pouring down her arm staining her blazer. Amateurish to say the least.

Sookie didn't need to be told twice, when she latched to her bleeding wound.

The feeling of somebody sucking and licking her blood caught Lina completely off guard. She released a deep moan before she could control herself and clamp her mouth shut. Her own life taking place in someone else's body felt overwhelming. Heat climbed up from where Sookie touched Lina's thigh to her core and did bad things to her resolve. She needed to keep her hands off from her cousin. She was not dinner and definitely not a fuck buddy. It didn't help, when Sookie leaned back against her chest and sighed contently. She probably didn't realize her hand was on Lina's thigh and it was burning her like a flame. Her slow wriggling in Lina's lap made the female vampire want to curse all there was to this world.

Fortunately Sookie stopped, when Lina couldn't.

"This is the closest I've ever been to having hots for a gal before" Sookie laughed. She was feeling a little tipsy.

_No fucking shit_, Lina thought and bit her tongue until it bled. She was willing her fangs to disappear, but she was all too aroused to succeed.

"There's a first time for everything. And a second I hope," she joked and gave Sookie a lazy fanged smile. Her eyes were heavy-lidded and suddenly Sookie didn't feel so comfortable sitting on her lap.

"Oh, god. You're not like… into girls or anything?"

Lina laughed lightly. Sookie was cute in her innocence. "It's not my preference, but I don't mind a cute girl once in a while. Oh, recently there have been only ladies for me."

"Ugh, great, now you sound like Pam."

"Pam?"

"Eric's child. She's like… that. But more."

"Into women?" she grinned.

Sookie furiously nodded with her cheeks slightly flushed. She looked uncomfortable.

"Well, is she hot?" Lina asked.

Sookie fumbled with her dress. "Please, don't ask me that question," she said looking appalled.

"Hey now, you can tell if a woman is pretty or not?" She liked teasing her killjoy human charge.

"I guess. In a Barbie way. Please stop now."

"Barbie huh, as in long legs, small waist, long curly hair, nice lips?"

"Yeah, exactly. I'm going to shower."

"I'm going to come after you, if you don't want me to join…?"

"COME ON."

"Ok, enough for the night," she laughed.

Lina surrendered to the sun and spent the entire day lying dead in the day nest somebody had built in the closet. Sookie spent the day fretting over the unfamiliar furniture and securing her old job back at a bar called Merlotte's. When the two finally saw each other in the evening, they got busy preparing a room upstairs for Lina and her stuff. Lina had brought quite a lot of clothes from her loft in Paris with her, and Sookie marveled at the beauty of the delicate garments. When they were finished, Sookie went to shower. Lina dug out her cell phone and called the one vampire friend she had in Europe, Isibil.

"Lina, _quelle surprise! Comment ca va? Tout est bien_?" a bright voice chirped.

"God, it's so nice to hear your voice. I'm good. Just getting settled in the States. The girl I told you about is just as nice and warm hearted Niall said her to be."

"Oh that's good. Can I meet her? When are you coming back to Europe? I miss you."

"I miss you too, but I don't know, when all of this is going to be over. Maybe a couple of months to go. Besides, aren't you on house arrest," she grinned teasingly although the other girl couldn't see it.

"Fucking Matthias and his infinite issues," Isibil snapped, but Lina knew she was kidding. Matthias was Isibil's husband, her mate. They had met in Germany during the World War II, when Isibil and Lina were lurking around the Nazi bunkers and draining Stasi officers. Feeding during a war was so easy that few vampires resisted the temptation. Germany had filled with wanderers that either made the wounded soldiers mysteriously disappear or took the law in their own hands when it came to prisoners of war. Lina and Isibil had crashed into an underground Nazi party to spill some blood, when a dark tall and burly vampire trashed in. Lina had gotten into a self-defense mode and nearly taken the heart out of Matthias the first time they met not understanding why the male vampire attacked her friend. When she had gotten on top of him snarling like a wild beast and ready to sink her nails deep in his chest, Isibil attacked her viciously beating her to the ground. To say it was all very confusing was a hell of an understatement. Vampire mating was another subject Lina loathed and shut off. Vampire mating stole her best friend and left her alone travelling to France to start things over again. It was bullshit.

"How's Matthias dealing?"

"He's being aggressive. I mostly keep out of his way."

"I still don't know how you can stand the bastard," Lina whispered.

"Lina," Isibil berated. "Respect him."

"Yeah." She didn't want to fight with her friend. "Well, I just called to let you know everything's good. I'll call you later. I'm heading into shower. Send Matthias my love."

Fucking Matthias. He still consciously kept Lina away from Isibil. Lina hadn't seen her for years and it was getting ridiculous. If he kept it up, there was going to be a tragic accident heading to his way. Fatal one. He was the reason Lina and Isibil now fought a lot. Lina couldn't understand how an abusive asshat could become her friend's reason for living and Isibil was furious at Lina that she didn't accept her life and respect her choices. Lina fantasized about a day she could corner Matthias again in Germany and tear him to pieces.

Lina threw her phone on the bed and grabbed her towel. A warm long shower was needed.

* * *

There were definite voices coming from upstairs as Lina lathered her hair, Sookie's screech being the loudest one. No surprises there. To tell the truth, the little princess shrieked, shouted and squealed a bit too much for her liking, but she decided to give her the benefit of a doubt. Losing one year of your life (or others' to be exact) could be a traumatic experience, so Lina guessed she was handling it ok. She would give her a few days before duck taping that little mouth for the remaining of her stay.

"What the hell?!" Sookie screamed again, although Lina felt no strong feelings of panic coming off of her.

Americans, she sighed. Only Italians and Spaniards topped them in being the absolute loudest people in the universe. She soaked her hair under the hot water and massaged her shoulders. This has been two long days. The other day was still taking its toll on her. She would retire early and stay dead until sunset.

She hadn't had the time to visit a hospital to buy some blood. She was starving and unfortunately feeding wasn't easy for Lina. She couldn't stand TruBlood and had to have living blood to maintain her powers. Live blood was a problem, because unlike other vampires she couldn't glamour. She didn't learn how to teleport as a fairy and now as a vampire she didn't know how to control minds. She felt like an underachiever.

A male voice. Somebody came barging down the stairs and softer footsteps followed. Lina curiously turned off the shower, stood very still and listened more closely. Sookie and an unknown man were talking in the kitchen. Sookie sounded annoyed and had that high pitch voice back on again, so Lina guessed the visitor must not be a wanted one.

"ERIC!" the little blonde shouted.

Hmm, so it's the big bad sheriff Northman. Lina didn't necessarily want him around right this minute. She had yet to report herself and undoubtedly he wouldn't be too happy to see her, if he sniffed her blood in the human he was so clearly pining after.

And she really, really didn't want to fight him butt naked.

So, the best plan of action right now would be to stand as quiet as a prostitute in a Sunday mass and hope that Sookie found it in herself to shut up about her presence in the house. Lina didn't even breathe. The man was 1000 years old.

Sookie sure did attract the strangest of company. She already had two authoritative male vampires swarming around her like sharks, a shifter as a boss and werewolf buddies. All this in a one year's time. Guess those would be the perks of having fairy blood in your system. At least the two vampires were supposed to be yummy and didn't seem too incompetent of taking care of her. In that sense Sookie was dealt a good hand. Despite what the Twilight franchise wants you to believe, not all vampires are cuddly poster boys or sexy, naughty, blood sucking lovers. Even the obese and monstrous were turned, although for what purpose was beyond her. _To each their own_, she guessed.

Especially the notorious Viking hunk now taunting Sookie in the kitchen didn't sound too a bad choice for a vampire boyfriend, if fangs were her cup of tea. Even the rumors around European courts had it that he was gorgeous, an excellent lover and fearsome in battle. He was said to be ruthless but a fair leader and that's why Lina didn't feel so bad about having to meet him in a couple of days to swear fealty. The Scandinavian warrior didn't sound too shabby at all for the little damsel in distress now hissing and yelling by the kitchen sink. Of course, now that she had Lina as her shadow, she could say farewell to both of those suitors. That is if she wanted.

_We girls are going to be just fine_.

Sookie was glaring at Eric in the kitchen. How dare he walk in here like the worst kind of peeping tom and claim some kind of ownership over her as if she was some piece of furniture coming along with the house. Her Gram's house that the bastard had bought.

"That was saucy," Eric said and smirked showing some fang.

"Eric, please can you just leave?" Sookie pleaded.

"Not before I reap the benefits of my investment," he said huskily and leaned closer to her neck. "Sookie, you smell delicious today. Vibrant." He drew a deep breath and closed his eyes. He could feel his body responding to the smell of her blood - but then he stiffened. Underneath the smell of her strawberry shampoo and her usual sweet fairy blood that reminded him of glory sunshine, was an alluring new scent. This scent was tempting, floral and arousing - but a vampire one. A scent he didn't recognize.

"Eric get off me!" Sookie shrieked and pushed her hands against his wide chest. "Back the hell off!"

Eric stared at her eyes for a moment and grabbed her by the chin. "Sookie," his voice was like ice. "Is there anything you might want to tell me?"

"No, get out!"

Eric's eyes darkened in anger. "Who's blood have you been drinking while I was away? It isn't Mr. Compton's and it sure isn't mine. So Sookie, whom exactly have you been giving yourself to?" There was an unknown vampire in his area and there had been no reports on his desk. He had every reason to be furious.

"You self-righteous asshole. Nobody that is any of your business," she snapped. Her jaw was beginning to hurt.

"Who. Is. He?" he growled through his teeth.

Sookie tried to shake his grip off. It was getting extremely uncomfortable. The look in Eric's eyes scared her. She wondered where Lina was and why hadn't she come to her.

"The vampire is my distant cousin, alright! A cousin concerned about my safety, which I think is in danger right now. YOU'RE HURTING ME GET OUT!" Her terror erupted as a bright light flashed and Eric went flying against the wall. In a second he was up and bared his fangs.

He tried to control himself. He needed to get his anger in check or Sookie was going to end up as collateral damage. There was something about that unknown scent that put him on the edge.

"You will tell him to come by tomorrow. If he doesn't show, I will come after him and it will not be pretty."

He opened the door, which squealed badly. "I will get this fixed."

Then he shot to air.

Sookie released a strangled breath and sank to her knees.

"Sookie? Are you ok?" asked a quiet voice behind her. Lina was standing by the stairs a towel wrapped around her body.

"Where were you?! He was hurting me and you didn't come!" Sookie shouted.

"I'm sorry. I thought you were handling it ok. It was better than me barging in, because it would've escalated into a fight. He's clearly possessive of you." Lina helped Sookie off the ground and looked around the kitchen. Sookie's grandma's photograph had dropped in the crash. The glass was broken.

"He's possessive of everyone and everything. He's insane," Sookie hissed.

"What did he say?" Lina asked as she bent down to retrieve the photograph. She would have to go shopping for a new frame.

"He wants you to go to Fangtasia tomorrow. And he's pissed. I should come with you. Maybe it'll help, if I explain?"

"No. I'll go alone. It's better that way. Besides I know how to handle a Viking. He's not a threat of any kind," Lina grinned.

She took a long breath. The kitchen air was permeated with a new scent. A scent that sent a shiver down her spine. It was weak, but strong enough to confuse Lina. What was it?

"I'm going to Bill's tomorrow. Eric bought the house. That son of a bitch," Sookie fumed.

Lina was trying to be discreet when she leaned into the wall that was dented after the hit. She sniffed it.

Her body eagerly responded. She didn't know what to think of it.

"Don't go without me. We'll go together, if the Sheriff won't sell it back to me," she said to Sookie.

She shook her head and decided it was nothing.


	4. Chapter 4

**CHAPTER 4**

Lina's feet softly touched the ground behind Fangtasia. The bar had been open for a few hours already, but Lina didn't think she had to rush it no matter how grumpy the Sheriff was about her interference with his love life. He was allowed to come play with Sookie as much as he liked.

Flying just did not suit ladies, as once again the wind managed to do a number on her hair. She was going to get a vehicle first thing tomorrow; maybe some flashy American muscle car. She'd only seen those in movies. Running her fingers through her locks and checking that her ears were covered she peeked around the corner to see the entrance. There was a big line formed to the front filled with humans wearing possibly the blackest cheapest things in leather and latex she had ever seen. This misunderstanding about all vampires being Goth lovers was a common thing and these guys here were not even close to the freakiest vampire groupies she had seen during her travels. There was a solid reason why every horror film hitting the box office lately centered on Asian little girls. But why on earth did they think that every vampire had a thing for dog collars and hardcore S&M? Rough sex, yes, but those fetish garments can get boring very fast. And they made humans stink.

She wasn't going to wait in line. She had a schedule. Her plan was to appear completely harmless and perhaps try to seduce the Sheriff into thinking she was on his side. Acting submissive was the key when playing with vampire authorities. Be nice and compliant and they usually left you alone.

Lina walked towards the doors and saw a pretty vampire dressed in a black and pink corset checking IDs. The woman had long blonde wavy hair and her style, although very fetish like everyone else's, was impeccable. _The Barbie Girl_. She did like the legs on her.

When she approached the entrance, the woman snapped her head in Lina's direction and gave her an unhurried once over. She welcomed Lina with an appreciative smile. Her large smokey eyes glinted with mischief. Lina guessed the admiration went both ways.

"Good evening, I'm Aislinn Collett. I came to report my stay to the Sheriff."

"Well good evening, beauty." Her gaze swept along Lina's figure. Her decision to wear the tight vest that did wonders to her curves seemed to pay off. "I can show you the way. Follow me." The woman motioned a bouncer to take her place and the two blondes stepped in.

Inside the bar it was exactly what you'd expect from a tourist trap cashing in a fortune by revealing the exciting world of vampires to the public. It was red, black, sexy, menacing and dark. The place was filled with curious girl groups glancing around guessing who had fangs, and an occasional vampire was brooding in the corner picking out a meal for the night. A group of college students were betting on who had the balls to approach the cute vampire bartender. The signs saying, "No biting on premises", were a hoot. She guessed this was the number one place to have your bachelorette's party nowadays.

The biggest attraction seemed to be missing. The large leathery throne on the stage was empty. Noticing her wandering gaze the woman, Pam, winked and went through the door for employees only. She stopped in front of a closed door in the hall and listened.

Well, somebody was having a romp. A girl's moans of pleasure battled the sound of heavy rock music from the bar. Something was rhythmically making a banging sound against the wall.

"Hmm, from what I hear the Sheriff is quite busy. Let's wait here shall we," the woman smirked and leaned against the wall. It seemed like this was business as usual. Lina made a mental note not to touch anything in that room.

"So, what brings you to our lovely city? Is it business or pleasure?" Pam asked while making her own observations of the girl in front of her.

Pam started from what she knew best. Her clothes. Her tight jeans were slim cut, low waist and designed for a woman that is petite or moderate height, max. Definitely an Italian designer. The jeans material was slightly ripped on purpose and showed skin. She had on a curious tight fitted and feminine leather vest with a flared peplum colored bordeaux. Pam swore she had seen it on British catwalks, probably Hakaan. The girl either shops in Europe, or comes from Europe. Her heels were black patent leather and made the petite woman several inches taller. She wore the heels comfortably and walked with a confident stride. In fact her movement seemed fluid, like a dancer's. In her hand she carried a cashmere cardigan, which Pam coveted.

She decided the girl looked good. At least Pam wouldn't be embarrassed standing next to her, which was a rare compliment. The girl's toned body and interesting eyes were attractive. Her scent was unique and alluring. Yes, she would take this little curiosity home tonight. She had to move fast before her maker.

"Mainly business, with luck a little pleasure," Lina smiled while staring Pam in the eyes. She knew the other vampire had interest in her and wasn't wasting time hiding it. She was always the one to appreciate a woman who knows what she wants. She found Pam beautiful with her lush lips and wicked smile. To be frank she had been missing out on action too long, so maybe she could be open to some fun after the meeting with the Sheriff. The woman also had an interesting scent, one she was sure she hadn't encountered before. It drew Lina in.

"What is your name?" she asked, although she already knew. Manners first.

"Pamela, but call me Pam. May I ask, what are your plans for the night? I'm sure he won't keep you long." Pam walked closer to Lina, took the collar of her vest between her fingers and felt the leather. Soft, exquisite. "Hakaan?"

Lina had to say she was surprised. "Why yes." The woman knew her stuff. "And no. No plans what so ever. Perhaps you could show a new girl around?"

Just then the door opened and a flushed skimpily clad girl strode out with a dreamy look on her face. She saw the two other women in the hall and smiled lazily. "Oh, hi Miss Pam," she laughed and went straight to the bar, possibly to share the experience with her girlfriends.

"Miss Pam?" Lina chuckled. "I like it."

"Good," Pam winked and went to the Sheriff's door.

Suddenly Lina froze.

The girl that had walked past her smelled strongly of sex, if her tangled hair and the moaning didn't already give away her little activities with the Sheriff behind the closed door. The smell of sex had never been repulsive to Lina considering she was a vampire, but it definitely hadn't been a turn on. Especially, when the smell came off of a random couple. It didn't bother her, but it certainly didn't entice her. That is why she couldn't anticipate how she reacted now.

The skimpy skinny girl carried a scent on her that she couldn't ignore. It was the same scent that Pam had, although still different and amplified by a thousand. The scent was so alluring and strong that she almost took off after the girl, so she could sniff her crotch a few times like some dog. She certainly felt like a bitch in heat. The scent soothed her and aroused her at the same time and she almost whimpered, when she felt her lower body muscles clench in response. She leaned against the wall and tried to shake her head to clear these thoughts.

Eric already sat behind his computer, completely dressed and not a hair out of place. He wore his usual black tank and black jeans and his hair was thrown back casually.

This week had been good for Eric Northman. Sookie Stackhouse had finally resurfaced after a year's disappearance and lived now in a house he owned. He could walk into his fairy's life, whenever he pleased. Compton wasn't going to be able to stop him now that he was a king. Eric's last fuck had been satisfying enough until he got between the little fairy's legs. Yes, a good week indeed. He lifted his legs onto the table and moved his gaze to meet his Child's.

"Pam."

"I have the newest addition to our area waiting for your attention."

The other vampire. He remembered the vampire scent that lingered on Sookie's blood and got quickly intrigued. Now he got to rip the fangs off the fool, who'd gotten blood into his human.

Pam continued. "She's come to report her stay. _And she's mine_," she mouthed the last part only to Eric and threw a sharp look on him.

_A she_.

"Send her in."

Pam turned to Lina. "Go right in sugar and come to me after you're done." The other girl had an odd look on her face that she couldn't decipher. "What is it? I didn't think you would be so prissy," she laughed and breathed the sex filled air.

Lina was calming her senses. One thing was sure: this wasn't normal. She had never reacted this way. Ever. Not even to the British officers in war covered in blood and sweat fucking her into oblivion. And god she had loved those British officers in their leather boots, nothing had come close ever since. Until this sorcery right here. She knew Pam was looking at her expectantly and soon the Sheriff would get curious.

The Sheriff. This scent did not belong to the girl; it was Sheriff Northman's.

She was in deep shit. Mortified.

There she was about to go in and have a meeting with him, when all she felt like doing was to rub herself on his feet, sniff and lick his body, fuck and cuddle. Goddess of all that's good and pure. Her fright must have showed in her eyes by the way Pam looked at her.

This must be how pregnant women felt with their hormones all over the place. She had heard from Isibil that all men looked like walking penises during some stage of pregnancy. Phallus hallucinations didn't sound as crazy now as they had then. After the meeting she would definitely call Isibil for some spiritual advice and then go have sex with this lovely Miss Pam like there's no tomorrow.

She briefly thought of Isibil. She was a mated vampire; something that was so rare it hadn't even happened for vampires that were closing in on their 3rd millennia of existence. It hadn't happened for Lina's maker that had met his true death after 2400 years. Her maker had deluded himself to hoping that by turning a fairy his changes would somehow magically improve, as fairies were a powerful race full of life. He had hoped that his Child, Aislinn, could become his Mate. Boy wasn't he disappointed.

Vampires are the highest developed species that by nature have strong equality between the males and females of their race. The individuals in power could be men and women alike, because everything depended on age and cunning. Age determined a vampire's strength and status among others. Those of old age were respected and young vampires naturally cowered in front of them. In addition to raw power, old age meant high skills of survival. Few young vampires challenged them. There were almost an equal amount of vampire queens and kings around the world. Lina had met some fearsome female leaders in her travels to Asia and one of those orient queens had indeed become her sensei; Meng. She had learnt everything she knew about survival, fighting and battle from her.

However, when it comes to mating, usually the male vampire has the power. He can claim his mate and use a blood bond to tie her to him and from what Lina had seen, the female had very little say. Of course the mates would care for each other and protect one another fiercely and even love each other, but it wasn't the female's decision. It was the male that held the strings. If the male didn't want to claim his destined female, they could always part ways and continue living as usual. Though, that was hardly ever the case.

What mattered the most to males and females alike was that mated couples were fertile. Lina had never witnessed it herself as the only mated couple she knew was Isibil and Matthias and fertility didn't always guarantee a child. However, there were strong rumors to support it and those rumors were all that mattered. A child by birth was something some mated couples were blessed with and it isn't an opportunity eagerly tossed aside. It is what made some desperate in their pursuit after their mate. A mate that could very possibly be nonexistent. It drove some crazy in their want. Lina thought they were ridiculous.

The realization hit Lina like a freight train. She felt her face go blank, when she remembered Isibil's words, when she tried to convince Lina about the wonders of being mated. How she couldn't fight Matthias even if she wanted to. "_I recognized him by his scent. Lina, it is something you cannot even imagine. The scent of your mate can make you run through concrete walls and fire to get to him. It's something I cannot explain. It overwhelms your senses and makes you a slave to your desire. It's pure euphoria."_

Sheriff Northman's scent was powerful. She wanted to run to him and give him everything she had to give. After a life of 200 years being one of the most powerful enforcers of vampire and fairy worlds alike, Lina wanted to give in to a man to protect her. She wanted to trust this mysterious man to keep her safe, even if she had never before trusted her life to anyone's hands. Not even her _sensei's_.

She was now certain that if she went to that room there was a good possibility that one of her biggest fears in her long life could be realized. It could end her life, as she knew it. She saw mating as a loss of independence and free will that should be treated like plaque in the dark ages. Avoid at all cost. It was like shackling herself to a man to treat you as he pleased for the rest of your life. Like Matthias did to Isibil. An eternal marriage without the option of divorce, _how fascinating_. She had never found that thought appealing and wouldn't start considering it now. She wouldn't give in to a man to control her life, not now - not ever. Of course there were rumors about mated couples, in whose bond the female had power over the male, but that didn't console her. Those exceptions occured when the female was an older and more powerful vampire than his male conterpart. The man sitting in that room was hardly weaker than her.

Pam was still staring at her. Almost fifteen seconds had passed, while she was panicking. She had to do something. The life-altering question was: face the enemy or flee like a bat out of hell before he notices? If she left now, she would have to come back later. He could become too curious and follow her. Then she would have to kill him. Niall wouldn't like that. She couldn't come up with any good excuse to leave now.

On the other hand, if she went to the meeting of hell, he could jump her anytime and he would be fast and strong. He was 1000 years old… four times her vampire age. Chances of survival were pretty thin, if he suddenly during the meeting decided that he wanted her. She tried to convince herself that her reflexes were pretty sharp and she could always shield herself for enough time that she could take off and take into air, where he couldn't reach her. She could also fight to harm him, if he got too close, then pick up Sookie and fly to the midnight sky no matter how loud her new charge screeched.

She had never been the one to run from a fight. Running is for cowards. But now, she kind of wanted to be a coward. This bodyguard job was quickly becoming too personal.

She took a deep breath and hid her horny and homicidal thoughts behind a cool mask of stark determination. She had no time for panicking and this was no place for losing her shit. She could smash a few buildings on her way back to Asia, where she would hide like a cavewoman feeding off animals, if that's what it took to keep her independence.

"I'm everything but prissy," her own voice surprised her. Calm and cold.

She took the few steps to the doorway without looking at Pam, who was still wondering what it was that changed her behavior. Even more baffling was that she could smell Lina's heady arousal. Finally, she decided to be pleased. The new girl was already putty at her feet and her arousal was mouth watering.

"You smell delicious. Come find me," Pam whispered in her ear and left.

Lina cautiously lifted her gaze to the Sheriff.

_Well fuck me. _

She immediately closed her eyes to collect herself for the 50th time in the past 2 minutes. She was going to be okay. She was going to be okay, if she didn't look at those cerulean eyes, or the strong jaw, big hands, toned muscles, lovely long hair and drop-dead gorgeous abs that were clearly visible through the rip-me-now tank top. Now that she had registered all this, they could be ignored.

She was going in. Ready to castrate this blonde warrior god, if he looked at her wrong.

She opened her eyes to see the Sheriff totally rigid. He was staring at her his face not masking the great surprise. It seems her theory had been right, unfortunately.

Fuck it all to hell.

The Sheriff was taking long breaths and clearly speculated the pros and cons of attacking her. Lina watched him warily and felt like a deer closed into the same cage with a hungry lion. She tried to move as slow as possible, when she laid her cardigan neatly on the backrest of a chair and took a seat in front of the man capable of ending her.

He was still staring at her, maybe having the same lust seizure she went through in the hallway. She just wanted to get the hell out of this building, so she laid on the table everything she had.

"Evening Sheriff, sorry to bother you, but I came to report my intentions of staying in the Louisiana area for some time. My name is Aislinn Collett and I'm moving here from France, my previous allegiance sworn to Queen Jeaudette Shan. I plan to stay in the area you govern as little time as possible taking residence in Bon Temps," she said with a voice so shaky she felt ashamed of herself. At this point she had to breathe again and the still lingering smell of sex and pheromones in the air felt like a slap against her face and almost broke her self-control. She gripped her chair for support. At any second she would jump over the desk onto the Sheriff's lap and purr like a kitten.

"My purpose for this visit is to protect my part fairy human cousin, Sookie Stackhouse, who I hear has offered you her services as a telepath before. She is wanted dead by the enemies of my family because of her mixed heritage. Once we're clear of the threat, I will leave your area at the earliest convenience. I do not present a threat to this area or your control and authority over it. I swear fealty to you and your King." She stopped and lifted her leg over the other. The picture of easiness, she hoped. Inside her instincts raged. She kept her face stern and waited for the Sheriff to clear her, so she could put this painful situation behind her.

* * *

Eric was totally still. His muscles tightened, relaxed and tightened again, as he went through the battle of wills in his mind.

One part of him ached to go around the desk, rip the clothes off the woman, fill her in one stroke and sink his fangs deep in her neck. He fought the thought of making her devour the blood that would forever bind her to his side. She could never leave and no one could take her away. Her scent pulled him and made it agonizing to fight against the instinct. She was his. There wasn't a single claim to deny it and no authority above it.

One slowly weakening part of him tried to hold on to rationality. The female vampire oozed power he hadn't encountered before. Right now, the woman looked dangerous.

The woman's posture was tensed as she watched him with darkened eyes. Her face wasn't softly featured like her human cousin's. In fact her whole appearance was strongly opposite except for the same blonde hair that seemed to have captured a bit of sunlight in it.

Sookie was a very pretty girl and Eric was fascinated by her liveliness and bubbly spirit. He thought she was… adorable. Her body build was soft and filled with teasing curves. She wasn't a complete walk over, but had feistiness in her. Good qualities for a pet.

This woman in front of him wasn't adorable. And most likely saying that she was feisty wouldn't be enough to describe her. He'd bet she could be blazingly ferocious, if she wanted to be. But now, being in front of something she could not possibly have anticipated, she sat calm and calculative. Only her expressive eyes revealed the thunder inside.

Miss Aislinn Collett was elegant. She was smaller than average height even with her high heels, but she had grace and a feminine poise, which he admired. Her skin had a golden hue that made her look radiant in her undead body. Her golden locks framed her face of unconventional beauty. She had high cheekbones that could've made her face very masculine, if it wasn't for her lush lips that hinted female sexuality. The soft lips were slightly curved downwards, and it made him wonder how she looked when she smiled with joy.

There was no suspicion about whom she was made for. _Aislinge_ meant a vision in old Irish. To him, she was. She was perfected to his every desire.

What he liked best was her eyes of blue steel that were conveying more than any words could. Her big catlike eyes had an indefinable sparkle in them. They could be devastatingly alluring and sensual. But now, they were like gimlets as she watched him.

Miss Collett was battling as well judging by the way she was gripping the chair, her knuckles white. She kept closing her eyes and avoided breathing. She was fighting against giving into him and the thought made his blood boil. She knew she belonged to him.

He had never been this closely in touch with his vampiric instincts. Not in battle, not while feeding and not in bed. He was already fantasizing how this woman would look lying in his bed, in his shower pleasing him on her knees or tied to the chains in the playroom waiting for him to come home like the obedient little mate she could be.

His mate. His woman. The one woman in existence only made for him and his pleasure had sauntered her way into his office and sat in front of him waiting for clearance. This was beyond belief. He felt like laughing.

Now he only had to decide, what to do with her.

Lina saw Northman's gaze slowly sweeping along her body. He was drinking in every curve, and it was making Lina unbelievably uncomfortable. She was used to men looking at her appreciatively, but this was something else entirely. He wasn't just picturing her naked. He was picturing her naked beside him, under him and over him for the rest of his existence. He was measuring her and wondering if she met his expectations. Lina wanted to cover herself like a little girl ashamed of her body. What was the most frightening about the situation was that she wanted to meet those expectations. He was the most handsome man she had ever seen. She wanted to please him. She was afraid of herself.

When he finally spoke, Lina almost flinched. His voice was hoarse and masculine. "But you already are threatening my control, Miss Collett."

Her lips pursed. "I assure you, it is the least of my intentions."

"Yes, I can see that," he said searching her eyes for answers. How old was she to have her entire being radiating power? If it wasn't her age, was she talented like Sookie? Telepathic? "And why is it that _you_ are here? How are you going to protect Miss Stackhouse?"

"I assure you, I'm capable."

"I asked how."

_Playing tough now, hmh?_ Lina was ready to bet this one isn't going to leave her alone after she walked out of his office no matter how she begged and threatened. Eventually she would have to get rid of him. Somehow.

She responded his stare with renewed intensity. "I have my ways, I've always had. But I repeat, I am not a threat."

"That is for me to decide. You are Sookie's cousin?" Eric asked.

"A distant one."

"And I would have to guess you are from Sookie's great great grandfather's side. Who assigned you?"

"Prince Niall Brigant."

"I see. Were you a part fairy like Sookie, when you were turned?" Eric wondered if this could reveal some very interesting possibilities. If her apparent power was due to some talent of hers, not her age, and the talent had only intensified after her change, Sookie's telepathy could also be strengthened.

"No."

Eric lifted a surprised eyebrow. Lina wondered, if she could've hidden this fact a little longer.

"I was the real deal," she said.

"The real deal?"

After a long pause she sighed, "Faery was my home. I was born as a full blooded fairy."

Eric lifted his legs off the table and leaned forward. "Show me your ears," he whispered.

"No."

"I'm not asking you."

She reluctantly lifted her hair to reveal her pointed ear right before she realized her mistake. She had also revealed her neck.

Eric shot from his seat and stopped only inches before her. His fangs were bared as he leaned in to inhale her alluring scent.

She reacted instantly. Her own fangs flew out accompanied by a menacing hiss. Her survival instinct sent Eric flying against a wall for the second time in a week. Only this time there was no flash of bright light, and the woman throwing him against the wall could do it again for a hundred times more.

Eric got off the floor with no less dignity. He was grinning victoriously. She was a full-blooded fairy. A beautiful powerful fairy turned vampire. Unique.

"Did you get a bit carried away there with those fairy powers of yours, sunshine? I suggest you tone it down. I would hate to have you deported from the area for the sake of open hostility," he said in a low voice. Of course he wouldn't do that. What he would do was handcuff her to his basement until she learned the hard way not to use her fairy powers against him ever again.

"Trust me, I would like nothing more, if the situation wasn't how it is, " she hissed. With a great effort of calm, her fangs disappeared. "You wanted to come sniff or bite something that isn't yours by a long shot. It was self defense."

"That's all very debatable." He swiped off some dust on his pants and returned to his seat behind the counter.

"So, a fairy," he smirked.

"Why yes." She didn't like the smirk one bit. "I just went through a harsh type of renovation back in the 1700s. Especially in the dental area."

"Any newly emerged powers after the turning?"

"No."

"Any old powers intensified?"

"No."

"Your lying now, little one."

"I am not. I do have _power_ that isn't exactly common amongst vampires, but this power has been with me since I was a mere babe."

"Do tell."

Her lips pursed again. "I bend air and gravity," and as Eric raised his inquisitive eyebrow, she sighed and continued: "I suppose you could call it telekinesis."

"Really?" It was better than he expected. "Show me."

"I just did."

"Oh, again."

"I need my strength right now."

"It wasn't a request."

_That's it_. "Let me make something very clear from the start, Sheriff Northman. I will not be harassed here. It is your duty to check up on my records, interview me some and then pray to any god you choose that I won't be a pain in the ass. If I am causing you unnecessary strain, you're welcomed to come and punish me any way you see fitting. If I'm withholding some information that could be harmful to you, I understand you'd like to torture it out of me. But until then, there's no need for coercion. I will assist you, if you'd need me whenever and however I can, but I am not your puppet," she sneered through her teeth.

"Do not tell me how to handle my business. And I need to see what you're capable of, would I ever need your… services."

"I'm not telling you how to handle your business here. I'm asking you to stay out of mine unless absolutely necessary. This here is very _un_necessary. Call any other court in Europe or Asia, where I've served, if you have your doubts and I maybe can show you sometime what I can do. Not now, when I've last fed almost three nights ago."

"I could order you some TruBlood from the bar."

"I don't drink that stuff. I'm many things, but not masochistic."

Eric smirked. "Well then, I could order _someone_ from the bar for you. I'm that hospitable."

"I feed in private." She never really wanted any audience to witness what she's become and she definitely didn't want Eric to see her feed. Too intimate, too risky. She didn't want to share any extra moment with him being stuck in this room.

"Really?" he laughed. "Pam was right, you are prissy."

"I will find my own blood, but thank you. If this was all, I would like to ask a few questions before I leave. Both of them concern my dear cousin."

"We are not done. I need you to fill your information on this form. You will pay tribute during your stay and stay out of harms way." Eric also needed to get out of this situation so he could think. "Ask your questions. I may or may not answer."

"Sookie informed me that you bought her house and still hold ownership over it."

"I do."

"I'd like to buy it from you for a good price. Then, I'd like to give it back to her, so a human would again own her house and some unwanted visitors would stay on the porch rather than drain her in her sleep."

"I'm not selling."

"It is about her safety. I really couldn't give a damn about the real estate market in Bon Temps, Louisiana."

"I understand your concern. She is after all a very valuable asset of mine. Still, the answer is no. She's got you now, doesn't she?" he grinned.

Lina responded with a crooked smile of her own. "She's only an asset?"

"Yes." _For the time being_, he added to himself.

"Ok. Well, if she is _only_ an asset, then you won't mind her having my blood once in a while. I want to keep tabs on her, so I can know the second she's in danger."

"I do mind actually."

Lina was quickly becoming frustrated with this conversation. He seemed like a dick. A dreamy steamy dick, but still very much one. _Ok, thoughts away from dicks, Lina_. "I assure you I have no interest in having a human for myself. Least of all a female cousin of mine. So she's free to play with you all the time you wish for."

Eric looked into her eyes. "It's not the idea of Sookie having the blood of her personal protector anymore. I understand the need for it. But it is you, my dear Aislinn, giving away your blood," he said eyes gleaming with anticipation.

The son of bitch was taunting her. Luring her in so she would snap again and go ballistic. It would be his reign thereafter.

"It is my blood to give," she hissed and gritted her teeth.

"For the time being," he said out loud this time.

Her eyes flashed. She was ready to leave before she did something very stupid. "I will mail this to you." She snatched the registration form and almost pulverized it in her anger.

She rose quickly and took a few steps towards the door before remembering her cardigan. She turned only to see that Eric too had moved. He held her cardigan in his hand and lifted it to his face.

The motherfucker dared to sniff it.

"Can I please have it back now, pervert?"

He smiled widely with his lovely canines showing. "No."

She stared at him aghast.

She moved her gaze to his desk. Her mind slowly picked up all the pens scattered across the table and lifted them a few inches up into air with their tips pointing towards the ceiling. She held them there a while for Eric to see before slamming them all at the same time deep into the cement. She gave Eric's stunned expression a cruel smile and left.

So much for appearing harmless and compliant.

* * *

** A/N: Jeez, this was a particularly difficult chapter to write. First impressions are everything and all that crap.**

**May the game of cat and mouse begin. ;) We're about to step into a crazy roller coaster of mixed-feelings, schemes and broken dreams, so now without further ado, slam me with some questions and tell me what you think! I can't thank you enough for the reviews I've already got. You have no idea how they inspire me.  
**

**Some points of "the mating" I'll address already here, some will be revealed in the later chapters:**

**1. I'm big on equality in relationships, so rest assured that I won't have my OC submitting to something she doesn't believe in.**

**2. I wrote mates as female/male counterparts, but M/M or F/F mates? Sure, why not.**

**3. The way I see it, with vampires everything has to do with blood, power and the art of survival. So in my story, the mates will create a blood bond between them, which requires a blood exchange not unlike turning a human, but milder.**

**4. The issue of control over the other, like Lina fears Eric will have over her, is to be revealed later, if it applies to them or not and to what extent. I don't want to spoil the story too much with these ANs.**


	5. Chapter 5

**CHAPTER 5**

_I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. 'Tis the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death. Leonardo Da Vinci_

She repeated the words of the Italian genius until they started to sound hollow. Her own wisdom was: _When in distress, fly_. Flying made her feel free. Free from shackles of her troubles and free from gravity. Lina didn't go to Pam like she'd promised. She didn't pick up any human either to ease her hunger, but shot in air and silently watched the lights of Shreveport nightlife below. Up in the air she found the ultimate hiding place. When she felt herself weaken she flew to a hospital, got a dozen bags of blood and left a generous pile of cash behind her.

When she came through the door of the Stackhouse mansion, Sookie ran to her dressed in the silliest pajamas she had seen in a while. _Bunnies_. The girl was making some hot chocolate before going to bed. Lina closed the door, but said nothing. She didn't know what to say. Sookie's eyes flicked back and forth from her spooked expression to the duffle bag in her hand.

"How did it go? Is he giving up the house?" she asked and followed Lina as she strode into the kitchen. "What's in the bag?"

"Something you won't approve," Lina said.

"TruBloods?"

"Nope." Lina unzipped the bag and started to pack the blood bags into the fridge.

"You… you don't mainstream?" Sookie whispered.

"Sorry. Your hot chocolate is ready." She herself took a cup, poured some blood in and heated it in the microwave. She watched as the cup slowly spun around its axis.

"Lina, are you ok?"

"Yeah. I'm good," she turned to Sookie and forced a smile on her face. When the microwave beeped she downed the blood with one big gulp. It's wasn't enough. She grabbed the whole blood bag walked to her room upstairs and threw herself on the bed. Her hands reached for a pillow that she drew on her face like an ostrich would hide its head in sand.

Lina couldn't believe her situation. She was bound here to protect the girl now spraying whipped cream on her hot chocolate humming joyfully downstairs. She couldn't leave her, but she couldn't stay.

She kept peeking under the pillow and flicking her eyes to the back yard scanning the area for a tall figure, half expecting him to leap through the window and crush her. Sookie couldn't do anything to rip him away from her, if he did. From here on out, she would never turn her back if she wasn't absolutely positive that nothing could lurk behind her. She would never forget to feed to maintain her powers and she would keep him at certain distance. Preferably several hundred of miles.

She was well aware that Northman hadn't made his decision about claiming her or at least spoken of it. Maybe there was a chance she could persuade him to let her go. After all, she was kind of a delicacy among vampires due to her blood and power. If he claimed her, he adopted a pile of problems he didn't know about.

She had many fans in Europe and Asia alike. It was the kind of sickly fandom nobody wanted directed at themselves. She kept to her own small circles most of the time, but her profession wasn't exactly secretive. Although she mainly scouted talent these days, she loved to take the stage and dance her heart out every now and then. Dancing was her life that kept her sane. It was the only outlet for her frustrations, sadness and joy. Also, she had to make living somehow. Fame was a small price to pay.

She thought of her plan of action. If talking sense to the wall of a Viking didn't help, she could always call Niall and talk about her options of skipping town and taking Sookie with her. If Niall failed her, she had to find a way to clear off the problem on her own. She probably had to find somebody else to do her deed. It was more than probable that she would chicken out, when she finally had to slash him. It would go against her every instinct.

There was a knock on the door and Sookie peeked in. "Can I come in?"

"Yeah. Sure," she rolled onto her side to make some room on the bed.

Sookie propped herself next to her. "So, did he give you the house?"

"Of course not. You weren't exaggerating his charming qualities."

"What did the asshole say?" Sookie demanded.

"Nothing of any value. You could take this to Bill, you know. If everything you've told me is true about him, he would still do anything for you."

"Yes! I'm going to see him tomorrow or the day after."

"Good," Lina said taking a sip from her blood. Sookie cringed.

"But Eric allowed you to stay? He didn't get furious about the blood thing?"

"Yes, I'm very welcome," she laughed without humor. Sookie had no idea just how welcome she possibly was. "He was quite calm about the blood."

"That's weird. Normally he would've killed you. But I think it's because you're you."

Lina's eyes cut to Sookie's. "I am me?"

"You know, a bombshell," Sookie laughed and nudged the other girl's arm. She was too sweet for her own good.

Lina smiled wryly. "I guess."

"You're kind of quiet. Did something happen?"

Lina considered telling her. But what she'd learned about the girl was that Sookie would hardly take it casually. And she didn't need a row of screaming and panic around her just now.

"Nothing you should worry yourself over. I don't think he will bother you anytime soon." She couldn't even say his name aloud.

Then it hit her. Sookie knew about Northman. She knew more than enough at least and every bit of knowledge was her ally at the moment. Now, she would learn more about her enemy.

"Sookie, can I ask you a silly weird question?" she propped up on her elbow and bit her lip.

"Yeah, sure, go ahead."

"Hmm, how should I put this… From what I've come to see, I think there are four types of vampires out there."

"Four?" Sookie looked confused.

"Yes four. I think. First type is the type who are very content in their living and, how should I say this, rejoice their vampirism. They feel good in their new stronger skin and do not necessarily bother others with their crap. They easily embrace the good stuff in it."

"Hmm… like Pam?"

"The Sheriff's Pam? Yes, I think she could fit into that category quite nicely from what I've seen of her," she said. It was a shame their evening didn't work out. "The second type are usually turned unwillingly and cannot find solace in their new life. They're not suicidal, but tend to reminisce their human life and how their life could have been without their maker. They usually have left families behind or have a cruel maker, or the most lucky types, like myself, hit the jackpot with both."

Sookie thought of Bill. She felt sad thinking how Lorena had forced him away from his family. That would've killed Sookie. He had had two young children and a sweet wife. His life would've been happy without Lorena. Though now with his new role as the king, he seemed less like his broody old self. He was more content. He smiled a little more at least. Or was it the power of a king that had seduced him?

Then she thought of the woman in front of her. She knew nothing of her story, although she was ready to assume it didn't involve a happy ending.

"I'm so sorry Lina. I don't know your story, but I think I know that Bill can relate with you on some level. Maybe you could talk to him?"

"We'll see. It's nice of you to offer really, but I don't think I need therapeutic sessions with a vampire King to deal with life. It's not that I'm miserable or have suicidal thoughts. The problem is that I cannot seem to find my place in this world, if you know what I mean and there's little one can do to help that," she played with her hair and absentmindedly braided it. She didn't want to seem depressed or anything. She wasn't. She loved life. "But I think it'll all sort out. After this little mission here and if I don't have to go back to France, I'll head out to Australia. I heard the people there are quite laidback, open minded and party hard. The vampire population isn't that great either. Just my cup of tea," she grinned.

It was a good thing she could fly though. Flying left no trace for a longing Viking to follow. She actually had a narrow chance to escape the situation she now found herself in. Or otherwise plan B would be executed – which entailed a dreadful lot of killing.

One question bugged Sookie's mind. "If you hate being a vampire, why don't you mainstream?" Sookie would definitely do that, if positions were changed.

"Just because I _am_ something that I don't like doesn't mean that I should ever pretend being something I'm not. Sookie, if Bill is saying that he can somehow tame his vampire self with some TruBlood, he's lying to you and himself." She searched her mind to find a decent human metaphor for that vile substance mainstreamers forced down their throats. _Dieting_. Every girl hated dieting. "Think of living on TruBlood like this. You're on a diet and your everyday meal is a smoothie consisting of your least favorite vegetable."

"Celery," Sookie instantly replied, which made Lina laugh.

"Exactly. Now think of eating nothing but celery smoothies day in day out. You could've mixed in some sugar, salts and whatever you humans basically need to survive, but in the long run it will drain you. Could you go to gym and have a good workout during a diet like that? No, you'd rather stop kidding yourself and have a steak."

Sookie wasn't convinced. "But if I needed to, I would starve myself with the celery."

"And readily face your mortal enemy? My power and bodily strength need blood. Not factory slimes, but living blood. It would be a suicide trying to live off of something that doesn't actually nourish you right. Maybe the gym was a lousy example, since our world is a bit more gruesome than an average twentysomething's."

"Okay, I guess. But no killing humans," Sookie said sternly. "I don't accept that from you."

"I don't ever need to, that's the beauty of it." Blood banks are lucky to have a legion of eternal investors. "But the last two types of vampires do and them I find dangerous. The third type of a vampire loses its sanity and turns into a complete monster. Their touch of humanity is gone. Fortunately, they usually lead a short life."

"The fourth kind is the kind of creep, you my telepathic friend would like to stay the hell away from at all cost. They love being what they are, because being a vampire brings them power that only increases with age. They are consumed by the possibilities of life and thirst for more at every turn. Their actions are based on their own gain and they have very little concern for others. They either die young because of their greedy ambition or live extremely long due to ruthlessness."

Sookie stayed quiet. She has met those types more than she would've liked.

"So now Sookie my question is, which type of a vampire is our Sheriff Northman?"

Sookie didn't even need to think this one. "Fourth."

Lina didn't breathe. Her mind was racing as she thought of her options. "That's what I feared." He will claim her. He will stop at nothing. She squeezed her eyes shut.

"But Bill will keep him away from me. He is the King now so Eric has to heed to his wishes," Sookie said happily.

"Yes, and I will help Bill. You're safe Sookie." But who was going to help her? "Tell me what you know about Northman, Sookie please."

"Alright sure. Well, I met him about a half a year ago, or I guess a year and a half now, at Fangtasia. There was this guy killing women, who'd had sex with vampires and they framed my brother for it. I had to help him and I did actually. I killed the guy with a shovel. It was so gross, you can't believe it."

"I can believe it. Go on."

"So, I was dating Bill back then or started soon after that. Oh, I should really tell you how I met him. Or I guess it's not that exciting anymore as he betrayed me. But it was the first night I used my fairy powers, Lina!" Her eyes gleamed with excitement.

"You go girl, now what were you doing in Fangtasia?" she said thinking that Sookie sure shouldn't aspire a career in story telling.

"I went there to ask questions about these women that were killed. I guess I wore something a little too pretty for the bar."

"Really? What did you wear?"

"A flower sundress."

Lina laughed out loud. "You went to an unknown vampire bar to ask vampires you've never met questions about bitten dead women wearing a sundress? And with fairy blood running in your veins? Were you going through some suicidal period?"

"Noo. But yeah, Eric noticed me."

"I don't know what could've walked into his bar to overshadow you." Well, maybe in his case she did know. "What has he done to you to hate him?"

"Well, he wants to make me his or something like that and I'm not anybody's that's for sure. He almost killed my friend, while holding him hostage for days in his dungeon. He's sent me to certain death more times than I can count. He's lied to me and always looks for his own gain before anyone else's. He is farther from humanity than any other vampire that I know."

Lina wanted to doubt that. It sounded a bit too drastic to fit him. A little voice inside her suggested that just maybe Sookie didn't know him at all. "Then you must not know many."

"No," Sookie took a sip from her hot chocolate. Then she smiled from ear to ear. "You want to come with me to Merlotte's tomorrow?"

* * *

After she left, Eric made only one phone call. It went straight to voicemail.

"_Vous êtes bien au +336 44 16 31 21. Laissez un message, s'il vous plait_."

"It's Northman. I have a job for you. Deliver me everything you can find out about a vampire called Aislinn Collett. May go by the name of Brigant. Leave nothing out and have it sent to me by dawn. Transfer as usual. I'll call again to give you further instructions. Don't disappoint me."

* * *

**A/N: Such a small chapter and so little Eric in it, but it had to be written to let Lina explain some of her choices and deal with her shock. Some badass Lina coming up later. That I can promise.**

**I was a very very happy girl when I read your reviews on the previous chapter and noticed all the story alerts. I may or may not have squealed with joy. Such a relief, because it was a huge step in the story and I didn't want to mess it up. All review is welcome; even if you hated the story with a burning passion. :)**

**I'm working on my master's thesis at the same time and can I just say writing this piece is the best stress reliever. I'll be back soon with the next update!**


	6. Chapter 6

**CHAPTER 6**

Lina got out the car with Sookie at the Merlotte's Bar and Grill parking lot. She watched as Sookie locked the car and started walking towards the entrance dressed in her waitress uniform. Country music was playing in the background and hollers of laughter echoed from the bar. The place seemed packed. Lina started to worry if this was such a great idea after all. She glanced down at her sneakers and worn out denim shorts that Sookie had forced on her. Apparently she wasn't doing a very good job blending in by herself. At least she got to keep her white _Patti Smith_ t-shirt. She usually wore it only at home, but oddly it had the Stackhouse approval.

"Come on! They don't bite. I can't say the same of you!" Sookie laughed and waited for her by the door.

"Watch it blondie. I eat chicks like you for breakfast. And couple of drunken rednecks like them for dinner," she grinned back.

"Not tonight!" Sookie waved her in.

"I look like a goddamn groupie," she muttered and grudgingly stepped into the bar. The smell of stale beer and sweat attacked her with force. Otherwise, the place looked nice. A place you'd go after a long day at work, she guessed. Jukebox in the corner still played a merry tune, but all the laughter died and every head turned to her direction. Lina could bet this would turn out to be an amazing night. There's nothing like the feeling that you're not welcomed.

"Look, they love me already," she whispered to Sookie voice laced with sarcasm.

"Forget them. They're probably wondering whether you're a serial killer, a V addict or about to throw them an orgy. All those have happened, you know." Sookie laughed and pushed her forward. A group of workmen whistled and stared at her boobs. She'd _never_ felt so beautiful.

"No, I just hunger for their blood. But the orgy idea has some potential. Who came up with that?"

"A maenad," Sookie rolled her eyes. "She used my home as her nest. You should've seen the place before now."

"Those little cracked hoochies sure know how to party..."

"LINA! Over here!" Jason stood up from the table in the back and waved. He pushed his male friend off the seat next to him and said the girl sitting opposite him goodbye. He wanted Lina to join him and that was sweet. She waved him back. Maybe she could use him as a shield against all those stares she was getting.

A man in his thirties came around the bar. He had shaggy brown hair and kind eyes, but his smell spoke volumes about what he really was. A shifter. Sookie's shifter boss. _Sam_, if she could remember correctly. He also picked up her scent and stiffened. Vampires never mixed well with other supes.

"Sookie? Who's this?" his gruff voice asked.

"Sam, this is Lina. Believe it or not she's my cousin. Lina, this is Sam. My boss, whom I told you about," Sookie introduced not noticing the slight animosity between the two. Lina held out her hand and the shifter took it, while eyeing her from head to toe.

"A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Merlotte," Lina said not breaking her eye contact. "I've heard nice things about you."

"Pleasure's all mine. Call me Sam," he tried to keep up his cold indifference, but relented. She guessed he didn't want to fight with Sookie. She could like the man – with some small reservations.

"And this here is my best friend Tara," Sookie pointed behind the bar, where a black haired woman was wiping beer mugs. Tara was glaring her with open dislike. Lina only nodded to her.

"I'll join Jason. Have a good shift."

"You want something to drink or even stare at? For appearance's sake?"

Lina only laughed. "No, I'll be fine."

Jason seated her eagerly to his table and started telling her about his day. He had been feeding starving kids at a place called Hotshot. Either there was some hot chick living in the town or he was telling her this to earn some points. She didn't know which one it was, but she very much doubted that this guy in front of her was only a very altruistic soul. After the story, he leaned forward and glanced quickly on his sides like he was about to spill a national secret. "I don't think the others noticed that you're a vampire. You really don't look like one."

"I don't?" she whispered back conspiratorially.

"No way! Your skin glows, they are as pale as sheet walking around like dead corpses."

"Thank you, Jason. You made my day," she purred and Jason split into a wide smile.

"Yeah, no problem. And there's other things too. You are kind and care about us. Vampires don't care about shit. You have this scary look, but to us your very warm. And you're beautiful," he said proudly. Then he looked right and left once more. "Can you show them to me?"

"I hope you're not referring to my chest."

Jason almost choked and took a quick swig of beer. Sookie turned to see what was going on and shot her a stern look. She mouthed to Lina _he's is your cousin_. Lina shook her head and mouthed back _a distant one_. Sookie rolled her eyes.

"No no, I mean your teeth, the fangs? I'd like to see them again. You know, up close," Jason corrected and smiled when he saw Lina grinning.

"It would scare the nice patrons silly. They're still ogling me like I'm an alien you know."

"No they're ogling you because you're smoking. You're the hottest thing they've ever seen," he said giving her a crooked smile. There was no mistake where this boy got her genes from, she thought.

"What's with the flattery, Jason?"

"I don't know, I just blurt things. It's my style to say things how they stand," he said and lifted his hands. He laid them on both sides of Lina's face covering her from others' view. "Can you do it now? They won't even see."

Lina laughed out loud. He was the sweetest guy she had ever met. His eyes shone with pure delight, when he looked at her. His smile never wore off, except for the times he got confused. He didn't have much going on between his ears, but he was cute as a puppy and completely harmless. Lina put her hands over his and was about to place them on the table, when the door opened. Lina's attention was caught.

"See, even your laughter is something beautiful," Jason continued not noticing the sudden change in the air. He rubbed her cheek smiling dreamily.

Eric stood in the doorway his eyes boring into Lina.

She didn't even have to look at him. She could feel his gaze like it had physical presence. A heavy pressure on her chest returned and the air felt sucked out of the room. She felt like suffocating as a strong current of excitement, lust, anger and dread washed over her. If she had a beating heart it would've jumped straight out her chest. She should've known he was coming back for some more information, but she wasn't exactly ready to deal with him so soon.

Eric's attention drifted to Lina's hands that still held Jason's in them. Like a reflex, her hands dropped and she drew them on her lap. Only afterwards she chided herself for responding to his silent order.

"What is it Lina?" Jason asked. He had no idea how dangerous his concern for her was right now by the look on Eric's face.

He stood there alone dressed in black leather coat and jeans. He was just as groomed as yesterday exuding strength and male beauty. Lina couldn't help herself. It seemed when it came to this man her self-control leaped out of the window and her brain turned to mush. Her gaze travelled along his figure and caressed the shapes of his broad chest and strong arms. She wanted to touch the black leather of his biker jacket. The whole bar could burn in wild fire around her, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from him and couldn't make herself feel ashamed as she watched him watch her. She could feel the pull as strong as before.

He was seemingly pleased by the effect he had on her. He was waiting for her to come to him. And she loved to disappoint him.

Instead of her, Sookie ran up to Eric and gave him her trademark welcome. "What are you doing here?"

Lina noticed the whole bar following them quietly. Despite the severe drunkenness, the patrons seemed to have put two and two together and caught upon what was weird about the new girl in town. The huge menacing vampire in the doorway exposed her. Instead of ogling she now only received ice-cold sneers. _Oh, well_. The peace wouldn't have lasted long anyway. She could only stay grateful for the audience they offered for her second meeting with the Sheriff.

Eric spoke to Sookie keeping his eyes on Lina. There was something sinister about his presence tonight and it worried her. "I came to ask a few things from your new guardian. Nothing to worry your pretty head over."

"She doesn't have to answer you anything."

"She does."

"She isn't in your beck and call."

"Actually, she very much is," he said not casting a single glance over the blonde human's direction. Lina didn't understand why he was being so cold to her. Didn't he want to secure her affections? Wasn't she two steps away from becoming his little pet? Sadly Sookie didn't seem to be distracted by this and went at him like a pissed off Chihuahua.

Lina decided it was time for her to woman up, get her ass up and Sookie out of his way.

"Don't you dare threaten her, you hear? She's having hard time as it is," Sookie spat. "And let her buy my house back, asshole. It doesn't belong to you and she has a point! Any vampire could stroll in and have us for dinner."

Eric finally acknowledged her properly. He gave her a look of exasperation. "I'm owning it as long as someone that belongs to me is living in it."

"You don't own me you bastard," Sookie hissed in a low voice and looked around to see if anyone had heard. Sam looked tense as he gripped the bar and glowered at the vampire sheriff. But the Sheriff was busy watching Lina's legs as she strolled to Sookie.

Lina reached a hand on Sookie's shoulder and gave it a squeeze. "Not now. Let him have his fun," she said sending Eric a meaningful glance. _Shut the fuck up this second_, it said.

Eric only responded Lina with a dark smirk and turned his attention back to Sookie. "I'm not talking about you, sweet Sookie."

Sookie was stunned. She turned to Lina helplessly begging for an explanation. What could he mean by that? _Lina_? Vampires do not own other vampires, except for their children. This she knew for sure.

"Lina might be your underling as you like to call them, but she definitely is not yours you arrogant ass. You're getting a bit laughable with this possessiveness thing you have on, don't you think?" she taunted.

Her guardian gave Eric a murderous look and brought her hands on Sookie's cheeks before she got him to retaliate. He would only be too pleased to proclaim her little secret to the world.

"He obviously isn't talking about me either. I'm going to step out for a bit and we'll talk after your shift at home, ok?"

Sookie kept eyeing Eric and huffed. "Ok. See you at three?"

Lina smiled warmly at her. "See you."

Lina turned and stepped out of the door. The second she put Merlotte's behind her she took off with vampire speed and stopped only when she reached an abandoned warehouse. She pivoted in a flash and saw Eric walking slowly towards her. Her face fixed back into a cold mask. _Scary look_, Jason had said.

"That was uncalled for."

"Just stating how things are. She is naïve to pretend she knows anything about the world we live in and the reality you face."

She chuckled. "Oh no. She was very correct about everything she told you."

Eric stopped right before her. "I beg to differ." The smirk never left his face. "What are you wearing?"

She crossed her arms and cocked her hip. "Sookie said I stood out too much. You wanted to see me?"

"You do. Stood out. I'm here to talk about your little mission."

"Then talk."

"Who exactly is after her?"

"Another fairy prince called Breandan. He has an ancient view on preserving our blood and continuation of the race and despises the fact that some of us could've done the dirty with humans once upon a time and reproduced."

Eric reached his hand to touch Lina's wild blond curls. They looked like silk. "_Us_. You still count yourself as one of them?"

"I am a fairy before I'm a vampire. It's my heritage and my family, there's no denying it." She looked at Eric's hand like it could bite her and took a few steps back out of his reach.

"Is there a threat to you? Do I need to worry about somebody being after you specifically?" Eric followed her steps. Lina felt intimidated, which didn't happen too often. She retreated. It was becoming a game of cat and mouse, and she needed to get control of it as soon as possible.

"Of course there is."

"Who?"

She didn't say. There were too many to list. He towered over her petite figure and folded his arms.

"And what happens after the war is over?"

Lina didn't want to answer that question either. She didn't want him to think she had no way out of their little game. She decided to smile broadly with an air of cockiness.

"Portals will be closed and we'll be out of your dimension for good. But you'll be fine, fairies and vampires weren't that close anyway."

She watched as Eric's face grew dark with silent anger.

"So, that is your motivation to protect Sookie? It earns you a ticket out of this world?"

"Not exactly. I do it, because I myself maintain a permanent spot on the top of Breandan's hit list as well. I'm a abomination after all and that's what we abominations do; stick together."

Eric's mind was racing. Him losing her to Faery wasn't an option. A place, where he couldn't go after her. He wanted to yank her to him and keep her under his firm grip. He would've done it, if he didn't know what her power was. He still had things to ask of her, so he let it go. For now.

"Is the threat real?"

"Niall is keeping Breandan quite busy. These are the hectic times. The war will be over in a month or two and it has been going on for decades. So, I'd say right now the threat is real, but occupied," Lina shifted her weight. She was glad the wind was quiet tonight. It kept his enticing scent from assaulting her. There were thing she wanted to know, too. "Sookie is quite a lucrative package for vampires. Has she attracted a lot of attention? Possibly in other vampires that might come looking for her some day?"

She saw his jaw clench. This was a topic he didn't seem to want to discuss. "The one possible threat is lying paralyzed and burned by the sun in concrete 5 meters deep without the chance of healing himself. He is not getting out anytime soon. It shouldn't worry you."

"Well, that's just awfully mean of you," she smirked. "Why was he after Sookie? Telepathy?"

"No. He thought Sookie's blood could make him walk in the sun."

"Did he get close enough to try? Is that why he is spending his concrete jail time skin burned? I'd guess draining Sookie could possibly give a vampire an hour, tops."

"Indeed."

"Then I sincerely hope he enjoyed his few minutes of sunny weather," she smiled. "Where is this concrete?"

"Under a building."

Lina lifted her eyebrows incredulously. "In Shreveport?"

"Mississippi."

"You know better than I do that the city architecture is a changing thing. He either gets freed or blown to pieces in some time over the next 50 years. Why take the odds?"

"Staking him would have been too merciful," Eric's face hinted that this was a closed subject. Siilence grew between them once again. A loaded one.

"I guess pleading to you not to bother Sookie's life would be useless?" Lina asked.

"Yes."

"I thought so." She glanced at her feet in thought. "But just so we're clear on things, I have a few pleas more. Promise me, that you may use her talent if she agrees on it, but do not ever turn her. Don't even think about it."

Eric gave her a dark laugh. "You're commanding me again, Aislinn? Are you sure you want to do that?" This time his hand reached the tresses of her hair. A small shiver ran through her. Her whole body tensed as she waited to feel his touch on her skin. He brought his hand through it fighting the urge of pulling it to reveal her neck.

"Promise me, Sheriff," she looked into his cerulean eyes that haunted her every time she closed hers.

"Call me Eric," he purred.

"No, I won't."

"And why not?"

"Because that would imply I know you on some personal level. I don't," she answered coolly.

"It's only a matter of time, my Aislinn." He was drinking her in. Her chest ached and she felt like gasping out of breath. She wouldn't let him win.

"_Quand les poules auront des dents, mon Sherif_" she purred back but her voice failed her. He could only smile at that.

"What about you, Miss Collett? Can you walk in the sun?" He had been wondering about that particular skill. It could be both deliciously advantageous for him later on and a very lethal talent this very day.

Lina told the truth. Sookie could always rat her out. And there was no harm in him knowing just whom he would be up against. She aced in staking her enemies while in their slumber.

"Yes. My skin starts burning in direct exposure after a few minutes. But the process is slower."

"You still die for the day?"

"If I choose so yes. My body needs it to recuperate and I still get the vampire curse of bleeds." She hoped he would be a rational vampire and think of her not as a conquest, but as a potential enemy or better yet potential liability. A thorn in his side. His little dangerous dirty secret he could still getaway unscathed, if he left her alone. Now.

She watched him stalk a few steps forward and he watched her back away. She knew what they were going to go through next.

"I didn't come here only to talk about Sookie and your fairy family." His tone was calm but unyielding. He saw her posture change.

"Have you made your decision?"

There was genuine worry in her voice. In her defensive pose she seemed even smaller than she really was. Her shoulders were slightly hunched as she eyed him warily. For a moment the confident woman in his office was nowhere in sight. Eric wondered how young she had been, when she was turned. If she had even reached fairies' maturity and child bearing age. Her face was an interesting mix of unusually proportioned features that were wickedly beautiful and pleased him to no end, but when she gave up her mask of cold fierceness, delicate youth shone through.

He kept her waiting for an answer for a long time. "No."

Eric watched her try to cover the small shiver of relief by shifting her weight from left to right. The mask was back on.

"Well good. I hope I can help you decide," she purred again, but now her voice was cold. He couldn't wait to hear her purr with pleasure.

"You can always try, little one."

"I think you'll want to listen to me," she said. "I know you're probably digging up my past as we speak and if you succeed to find what you're looking for, you will understand why choosing to bind yourself to a creature like me could cost you your sanity and possibly your life."

Eric was expecting entreaties like this. He heard them gladly. "I couldn't imagine why."

"It's in my blood. The fairy blood isn't as dominative anymore, but it is still my very essence. I think it's hard for you to say, because my blood affects you differently than other vampires, but my blood is very sweet. It is addictive for vampires."

But this Eric didn't find amusing in the least. In a flash he pushed Lina against the concrete wall and pressed himself close to her. He had succeeded to surprise her. Her body couldn't do anything to push off the strength of a 1000-year-old vampire. Without her power he could bend her in any position of his liking and there would be no way to stop it. She could always try screaming a bloody murder. With his enormous arms caging her in the tiny space Lina could only stare at him eyes wide. Her body ignited from feeling him so close to her.

His fangs dropped in anger, but it was entirely for a different reason than Lina expected. "Have you given your blood to any other vampire?" he snarled.

So it was a jealousy issue that got her pinned. She couldn't contain her own frustration any longer. "No for fucks sake. Only my maker has had it."

"Where is he?"

"You'd go after him, wouldn't you?"

He snarled through his teeth. "You're trying my temper, woman. It's not very wise."

"Dead. Killed before our 10th year anniversary. It was very tragic." Her face showed no longing. "Can you move? I can't… I can't think clearly."

But he had no intention of moving; he got her where he wanted. He brushed his body even closer to hers. He could taste her sweet breath. "Then how do you know about the addictiveness?"

"I'm not the first of my kind. I've always been the only one in my existence, but there was another before my time."

"I see. What happened to the one before you?"

"He was passed around as a party treat in the Kingdom of early England about 550 years ago. The overall attitude towards fairies was no better then than it is now. The fairy war was too a recent memory, so the behavior towards the poor newborn wasn't exactly the best mannered. He was more a toy than anything else. Like mine, his maker was killed at the newborn's early age, when she so foolishly showed him around the courts of Continental Europe. He quickly became property of English Kingdom after his maker's demise. It was then, when the power of his blood was revealed. It was considered an aphrodisiac. And one faithful night he was finally drained dry." She paused and looked at her tormentor deep in his eyes. "That is not going to be my fate."

"But they weren't mated, little one?" he moved to whisper in her ear. As his anger waned, he kept pressing closer to his woman inhaling her scent that sent him deep waves of pleasure. His face nestled on her neck. "We are."

"No, but it doesn't matter," she whispered back biting her lip. She tried to command her body to duck and scram, but the orders weren't getting through. It was only his presence that commanded her. And he wanted her to stay very still.

Eric hands moved from the sides of her head to rest on her hips. His grip was firm as his fingers applied enough pressure to keep her from moving. He lifted his knee and leaned it against the wall in between Lina's thighs. Caging her tight.

"Oh, it matters." He ran his nose on her neck and enjoyed the tiny noises that she made. "You have been made for me. You were destined to me. You will never be with anyone else like you will be with me." His one hand travelled along her waist lifting the hem of her shirt. "You're so small. I could never hurt something this petite."

"I only seem small because you're such a mountain of a man." She bit her lip to cause her some pain to override the pleasure. His fingers danced just under her breasts. Her nipples tightened desperately waiting for his attention. Keeping up this conversation was exhausting her. "And you're only ludicrous, if you believe that somebody could have been made for you. Least of all me as I wasn't even born in this dimension. Your capacity of self-delusion is infinite, I see."

His fingers pressed more tightly and she couldn't stop the whimper escaping her. His hand ran along her stomach and ribs spiking her arousal. He growled, when it reached him. "Your skin is soft and warm. You're curved just the right way for me to hold you in my arms. Your body recognizes my touch. How could you have not been made for me?" he whispered his voice husky. He was pleased to feel her starting to shake, because he knew it wasn't with fear.

She wanted to kill him. And fuck him like an animal. The two impulses went together too often for her nowadays to consider them incongruous. "Don't make me throw you, Sheriff." She placed her hand on his chest and pushed.

Fortunately, he obliged her. She took deep breaths, her chest heaving. She gathered her thoughts again, when he took steps back watching her with darkened eyes. Eyes that held many promises. One last shot at trying to plead with him.

"How do you think your enemies near and far will respond if they hear of me? I'll become your liability. You're a Sheriff and from what I hear there are many who would love to have your throne or would only get a kick out of watching you burn. They will seek to hurt us. Despite the shenanigans that have been going on in this town before, you've led quite a nice and peaceful life for years. That nice life will end the second you fill me with your blood. _Eric_."

He only smirked at her. "Let's see if we can make you scream that name some day."

He took off.

He flew.

He stole the only hiding place she had left.


	7. Chapter 7

** CHAPTER 7**

Lina was dreaming. Between the twilight zone of her lying dead and life coming back to her body, she saw flashes of colors that morphed into pictures and visions. Usually they were as quick to come as they were to go and she struggled to connect the pieces of the dream together. Today the pieces made sense. The dream played in her mind like a movie strip.

It was the same old dream she always had, when she was going through rough emotional distress. Instead of letting her lie dead to the world until sunset, it seemed like her mind only wanted to torment her some more during times like this. It was a happy dream, until it became a nightmare. The worst part was that it wasn't a figment of her imagination, but actual flashes from her life before. It was of the day she lost her previous life.

She was running through a dark underground corridor filled with dust and spider webs the fairy light from her hand showing the way. She was laughing from excitement. It was the grandest debutant ball Kingdom of England had ever held, the debutant ball of the youngest daughter of King George II, the House of Hanover. The year was 1757. Lina had been in England for two years already and she would have to get back to Faery soon before anyone noticed her absence. And this was just the night to celebrate that.

Four other sprays of light followed her steps. She heard shouts for her to stop already, but they only made her speed up and giggle madly. Her beautiful white golden gown flowed in the wind and she ducked her head so that no dust would get stuck in her curly hair. When she almost tripped, big arms grabbed around the waist and lifted her up.

"_Not so fast. Somebody still has to escort you. Now princess, we go up,_" Áron whispered in her ear in old Irish and pointed up to the big wooden hatch above their heads.

"_Hands off my sister, Áron. It'll be I who escorts her. Not any one of you dogs_," Ronan smacked Áron in the back of his head. Ronan was her big brother with blond wild hair around his face and stunning green eyes. She remembered feeling so proud of him. He was just the kind of big brother that made other girls make friends with Lina just to get nearer him and other boys afraid to even look at her wrong in fear of his anger. His face was just as regal as his status among the fairy royalty. Now, just like she, he was going through a rebellious phase before owning up to his responsibilities beyond this realm. Ronan was the kindest and most adventurous person she knew. She loved him more than anything.

Claude and Frans sniggered behind them as they all climbed up through the hatch.

She remembered the luminous lights of the ballroom and dancing with Frans giving her loving kisses on her cheeks. He spun her endlessly with other debutants staring at her green with jealousy. Frans was still boyish in his looks and years younger than her, but he was still the most handsome man England had ever seen. His brown long hair hid his pointed ears and his eyes were warm brown as he watched her. He had loved her all his life, but was still too shy to say it out loud. She was not allowed to love him. But tonight was all about what she wasn't allowed to do.

They were dancing to a slowly building hymn. She remembered how Frans' breath hitched when her hands travelled along his chest. He didn't seem to know how to handle her. When her touches grew more daring, he took hold of her wrists. His eyes had looked so pained.

"_No Linn. You can't_."

"_It's only you and me. Who is going to tell on us_?" she whispered in his ear and kissed his cheek.

"_Your father will have my head_."

She smiled at him and kissed him on the lips. "_I'll protect you_."

She heard how the whole English court whispered furiously at so daring display of affection and from a woman. Nobody knew who they were. They looked like they belonged here with their air and clothing hinting for great riches, but nobody knew what house they belonged to and how influential their families were. And the audacious girl dared to have her hair down in the most prestigious court in Great Britain.

Then everything fell apart. They heard Ronan yell from a distance. There were so many people in the way they couldn't see where he was and what was the matter. Lina filled with fresh dread.

"_That was my brother, what's happening_?" she said to Frans, who tried to see through the masses. All they saw was red and blue velvet, feathers and massive hair-dos.

"_Linn, I need you to be brave now. Run to the chambers downstairs and wait for me there. I'm going to get the others and see that they are not harmed. We have stayed here too long and we're starting to attract attention. We leave tonight. Go."_

"_No! I can help, you know I can_," she furiously shook her head and tried to grab his arm, when he started to move away from her. Leaving her alone.

"_I can't put you in danger. You must go now. GO!_"

He had disappeared. She just stood there staring after him. Dancing couples bumped into her and casted her disapproving looks. People started to crowd her and push her off the floor. She stood her ground stubbornly willing her brother and friends to come back. That was until she heard the only word that could get her moving.

_ Vampires_.

Lina's eyes opened as she came back to her body. She sucked air in her lungs in one panicked gasp and reached for her _katana_ on the nightstand. She sat up staring at the wall slightly afraid and fought the feeling of sadness that was threatening to overcome her. She understood, why these dreams haunted her, but this one had seemed so much real and cohesive. It wasn't only pictures and emotions anymore. She had felt the velvet of Frans' suit, when she touched him. She heard the words spoken to her like Frans was standing in the room with her. It was like her mind was forcing her to go back to that time and relive it. And she hated it.

When she calmed down, she got out of her cubby, as Sookie liked to call it, and caught the smell of food coming from the kitchen. Sookie was wearing a big apron and fixing herself a plate of something gooey.

"Good evening there, chef," Lina said and got herself a bag of blood from the fridge. She ripped a hole in it with her fangs not bothering to act too civilized around Sookie any more.

"Hey sweetie. Dinner time for both the human and vampire," Sookie chimed and took a seat at the table. "It's my evening off, what'd you like to do?"

"Well I don't know. We could just stay in? Or would you like to go dancing? I think I need to work off some steam."

"Sounds nice. I'm in," Sookie said, but then straightened in her seat like she remembered something important. "Oh, and you've got an admirer."

Lina raised a surprised eyebrow. "How so?"

Sookie pointed to the table near the stairs. "Those came for a Miss Aislinn Nessa Eibhleann Collett-Brigant around four in the afternoon. You should have heard the delivery boy as he tried to spell your middle name. It was hilarious."

A large bouquet of long stemmed blood red roses stood in a vase on the table. They were majestic. A small card was hidden between the leaves. She didn't need to read it to know who was behind the delivery. Him knowing her full name was message enough.

"Sookie. Forget the dancing. Are you ready to go see Bill?" she asked eyes gleaming with mischief. She was about to get even. Even-Steven.

* * *

Eric arrived in Fangtasia around nine. The line in the front had fallen silent when they saw him, but that was only before the loud whispers and excited giggles took over. There were the usual sighs of awe and longing, which were beginning to bore him. For the past three days he had had difficult time finding himself a meal that didn't repulse him.

Pam greeted him inside dressed in a dark purple and black kimono. "Nice of you to join us."

"Any news?"

"One of our suppliers is waiting for you at the bar. He claims he almost got beaten to death by our little angry mob outside trying to provide the latest load of TruBlood and now he's threatening to press charges," Pam looked at her nails already bored with the subject. She was already bored with the angry mob. It was a shame she couldn't even play with them.

"Let him wait. I'll be in my office. Bring me a girl."

Suddenly Pam's eyes glinted. This was much more interesting. "Do I even need to ask what type of a girl?"

Eric only grinned and left for his office. Not even two minutes passed, as he watched the door open and Pam walked a girl in and seated her on the sofa. The girl looked after Pam as she left. She seemed equally excited and nervous. She smelled of sweat and arousal. Eric leaned forward on his knees.

"What is your name, girl?" he asked.

"Carol, Sir," she chirped.

"Hello Carol, are you a daring girl?"

Small confusion washed over her face. She fumbled with her dress. Her nerves made her stammer. "I.. I.. I guess I am."

"Then would you be interested in playing a little game of dare?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Good girl. The rules of the game are as follows. I will make a phone call to an old friend. You will sit tight and wait for me to finish it. If I am smiling at the end of the phone call, you'll be generously rewarded. But if I seem upset in any way, you will drop on your knees before me and do whatever you can to make me smile again. Does that frighten you?"

It did, but she obviously tried to push through it. "A.. a little.. but no too much Sir."

"And do we have a deal Miss Carol?"

She nodded timidly.

"Good. It'll be a nice deal for you. I have every intention to be smiling at the end of this." He lifted his legs onto the table and dialed a number that was more difficult to get than any monarch's in the world. He waited patiently for the other line to pick up. And it did.

"Speak," a smooth voice answered.

"Ever so friendly, my fairy friend."

The line was silent for a few moments. "If it isn't Mr. Eric Northman. Long time no hear. I have to say I wasn't expecting this call."

"Brigant, it's been years, indeed. I'm calling in the favor you owe me." Eric watched the girl shift nervously under his gaze. Her waist wasn't small enough and her curves not pronounced in the right way.

"Is that so? Well old friend, what do you need that I might have, although I feel sad to inform you that this is not the best time," Niall's voice said. He did sound strained.

"It is never good enough time. Fortunately, this won't demand any resources of you, at least not yet."

"Alright that is good to hear. Times aren't treating my kind right as you might have heard. If you need me to do something ambitious, I'm afraid it'll have to wait a few months."

"It is more about what I'm asking you not to do."

"That does sound better," his voice was suspicious. He tried to cover it under a pleasant, calm tone.

"Let's see how long. Niall, first I need to ask how much do you know about vampires and our myths?"

"I have to say some, not all."

"How about vampire mating?" The girl on the couch looked confused. She constantly twisted her hair between her fingers trying to act casual but failing. Her blond hair was too short and bland.

Niall paused and thought for a while. Eric couldn't tell if he knew where this conversation was leading. "Not much. It is a rare occurrence, I should think. I have only ever met one mated couple in my time and I didn't get to stay with them for long before the male became hostile. I cannot help you with this, my friend. I know nothing of the event."

"Actually you can, and if you remember how you came to owe me, you definitely will."

"Oh. I don't see, why you should feel the need to threaten me, vampire. I will do what I can to my best ability. I'm a man of my word."

"I trust you on that. You see, as it has come to pass, I have finally met my mate. And what I need you to do is help me to secure her."

Niall fell silent. Eric could almost hear the wheels turning. Niall knew whom he meant. His voice had gone down, when he spoke. "Who is the lucky woman?"

"Your granddaughter," Eric grinning made the girl on his couch smile, before she caught up that he was talking about another woman.

Niall's voice broke. "Aislinn…"

"Yes," as Eric's grin grew wider the girl started licking her lips. The other woman wasn't here, she was. Eric watched her tongue slowly brush her upper lip. It didn't look soft enough.

"I know my granddaughter, vampire. She does not wish it."

"It doesn't matter."

He heard a loud crash from the other line, before Niall's enraged voice bellowed. "It doesn't matter? My granddaughter's wishes do not matter to you?"

"They do, greatly. But this is not her decision."

"So what you are asking me is to betray my own blood and kin. My own grandchild," Niall said with fury coloring his voice.

"No betrayals. You're not going to bring her any harm, if you help me. I will give her a good life, Prince. I will protect her with every power I have, when you cannot. I am able to give her a family after you leave her behind. I could be able to give her children. She will want for nothing."

Eric took a news article in his hand. His desk was stacked with papers, bank records, contracts, articles and photographs. This particular article was published in _Le Monde _two months ago informing the public of the upcoming premier of dance company Mirage's new show _Sinful_. In the picture above the headline, there were people standing on the stage and staring at the ground their head bowed low. In front of the crowd was his Aislinn. She was on the stage on her knees. Her back was arched far so that her head touched the ground behind her. She looked ethereal. The news paper called it a spectacle of the year. It was his favorite picture.

"I am only asking you to not help her to get away. You will not in any case grant her an entry to Faery. And she will come after it. If she does find a way in, you will do everything in your power to send her back to me. This might be now or in years to come."

Niall's voice asked dejected, "You have not claimed her yet?"

"No, not yet. I will."

Eric heard a deep sigh. "Vampire, you have to let her go. She's been through enough."

"Tell me how so."

"It is not my story to tell. I know you could continue living as you were without taking her, and I will reward you for that decision."

"No."

"You know that I will pay you handsomely in any way you choose. Grant her her freedom and you will have everything you desire for the rest of your existence and mine. She is still a royal amongst our kind."

"It is not money that I lack."

After another long silence Niall threw in his last card. "I cannot give you my granddaughter, but I can secure you somebody else. I hear you have had designs for my great great granddaughter as well. Sookie has woven herself into the world of vampires, and I hear she doesn't mind your kind's company. I trust you vampire. You are able to protect her against others who want to harm her and she would be valuable to you because of her talent. She will need protection, as I cannot keep Lina shackled to her side for long. I could help you claim her."

"That's a wonderful offer, but I've lost my former interest in Sookie. Exchanging my mate for a human that will not survive to the next decade because of her less than rational attitude would be unreasonable. I ask again, do I have your help or not?"

"What do you want with Lina?" Niall sighed.

"Everything."

"You have no idea, what you ask of me Northman. You don't know her. I don't mean to insult you, but you cannot help her to find peace. She will never feel content being bound to you. You would only force her to live with her demons for the rest of her existence. I assure you, she will break, if you claim her against her will. What are you going to do with her then?"

Eric thought for a moment. Niall was right in one thing; he didn't know about her past. It wasn't information he could buy. "You forget something. My blood calls her to me. Eventually, the call will make her submit to her desire and my blood will only bind her. It is in her nature. She will learn to seek comfort in me in time. She will learn to ask everything from me. She will be happy. After all, she was born for me to find her."

"Vampire, do not ever imply that a fairy was born for your needs. I will seek to end you for that insinuation alone," Niall growled. "You do not understand her. I forbid you to treat her as you wish."

"I will take good care of her. Give me your word that you will not interfere."

Niall ground his teeth. "You cannot claim something that is not yours."

"She is mine in every way there is," Eric snarled.

"No, she is not before she herself wants it. But I will do as you wish. She will not get in Faery. It hasn't been possible for her for a long time."

"Thank you, it was a pleasure, Prince." He eded the call.

The girl bounced off her seat. The Sheriff was smiling widely.

"Come get your reward."

* * *

**A/N: So, this was a bit dark chapter. I hope you notice the difference here; Eric doesn't love Lina. Eric loves and covets an idea of her. At least at the moment... Tell me, am I doing justice to him? Give me your two cents. :)**

**I want to thank everyone who's had the time to leave a review! It's so nice to hear your thoughts. I'm also giddy about all the favs/alerts, thank you too! I'll post another update in a few days. Lina is ready to step up her game.**


	8. Chapter 8

** CHAPTER 8**

A big brown GMC SUV was keeping a two-car distance from Sookie's yellow little vehicle. They turned left and the big car followed. They accelerated hard before red lights leaving the car behind, just to see it reappear around the corner three blocks later. They drove around aimlessly a few laps around Shreveport and the driver didn't seem to notice. They had a tail, but Lina declared him the worst one that ever lived.

"What exactly are you doing, Lina?" Sookie asked confused, when they drove past the same McDonald's for the third time. Lina was driving and Sookie sat on the passenger seat. Although Sookie's car coughed once in a while and protested against Lina's heavy abuse on the gas pedal, the fairy vampire was exhilarated to be driving after long last. She even sang along with the radio. Or that was until the SUV came to spoil the fun.

"Driving?" she said while peeking at the rearview mirror. She couldn't see who was driving the car, but she guessed the driver didn't want them any harm. The car never came closer than thirty feet, but she was still cautious.

"I know that you haven't driven in a while and this is very exciting for you, but this is the third time I've read the McBreakfast menu. Let's get to Bill's already," Sookie complained and tried to lower the car window, but the goddamn lever was stuck. "I'm bored."

"I'm enjoying the scenery."

"I'm not buying that!"

"Okay easy, but look. We're here!" Lina cried.

They stopped in front of a large car dealership and Lina jumped out. She looked from left to right, but the SUV had probably driven past. Besides, if the driver was something supernatural, they had no worries of being shot from a distance or run over. Drive-by-shootings or snipers didn't belong to the supe repertoire of getting folks eliminated. For them, it was all about blood and carnage.

"You're all chipper. It's good to see you not stressed for a change. What are we doing here?" Sookie asked and slammed the car door, which screeched in response.

"Buying me some new set of wheels, what does it look like?" Lina said grinning. Her hair was braided to the nape of her neck and her black biker jacket had a high neckline that hid her scars from view. She was dressed like the models in an old Levi's commercial looking ready for a road trip. As a contrast, Sookie had opted for a deep blue sundress and looked like a dyed in the wool Southern belle.

Lina's good mood had everything to do with her fresh determination. She sincerely wanted to thank Mr. Northman for the flowers. Those roses had crushed her panic attack, now she wanted to face the rain. She had made the decision to fight fire with fire.

"I thought we were going to Bill's?"

"We are. We are going to drive there with style," Lina answered, took the other girl's hand and started hauling her inside.

"He lives just across the cemetery," Sookie muttered.

It was the American muscle car wonderland. The air smelled of fresh paint, oil and grease, and the décor was ripped from a 50s' rockabilly movie showing pictures of pinup girls on every wall. There were loads of people marveling at the cars that were lined up left and right. The most eager fans took photographs of themselves leaning against a rare model. Lina let go of Sookie's hand the second they were inside and happily skipped to the nearest purple Pontiac Firebird '67. She laid herself on the hood with cheek pressed against the paint, and sighed "Isn't she beautiful?"

"Are you sure you're a vampire? I just saw you skip." Sookie crossed her arm and bit her cheek to keep from laughing.

Lina only winked and rubbed the hood with her hand. "Imagine this car, a long _long_ road with some good old rock music blasting from the stereos and you'd be skipping too. Then imagine stopping in the middle of the desert, climbing on the roof of the car and doing some romantic stargazing. Or sneaking your man into the backseat and making sweet _sweet_ love to him until he couldn't remember his own name. Mmmm, this is exactly the car made for all that sappiness." When she turned to kiss the paint, the sales assistant came running and asked her to take a few steps back. Lina pouted at him.

"Did Bill ever take you on romantic dates?" she asked, while climbing to the driver's seat of a Dodge Charger.

"We didn't exactly have the time to do that. There was always some disaster waiting for us," Sookie told grudgingly.

"I'll remember to reprimand him the second we get there."

"No, no you won't. How about that one, it's quite pretty?" Sookie walked to a '65 Buick Riviera and Lina followed.

"Definitely. This one has some real potential." She watched her reflection on the shiny bumper and smiled happily. But then she glanced at the back of the store and saw something breathtaking. It was the all American dream vehicle. "Come to mama."

She saw a deep red, hot and sexy Corvette beaconing her and she couldn't but go to it. She slid her hand along its contours and peered inside to see black leather seats and a shiny steering wheel. She observed every angle and finally lifted the hood and examined the angry looking engine. She was going to take it for a wild ride.

Sookie walked behind her and Lina turned around excitedly. "This is perfect. How much do you think it is?"

"Eric drives one."

For a moment, Lina looked like somebody had just snatched her favorite stuffed animal and peed on it.

"But it isn't fair," she whispered and stared at the car longingly. A second later, she just slammed the hood down and took quick steps towards another Buick, while muttering, "Absolutely hate the car. Absolutely hideous, pleh."

"God, sometimes you're such a child," Sookie laughed. They were fawning over a Lincoln Continental, when Sookie spoke again and caught Lina off guard. "He's chasing you, right?"

Lina stiffened, but collected herself to look up at Sookie innocently. "Who?"

"You know who. Eric. Because I think he definitely would. You're too gorgeous for him to let you pass by. What I've heard from Bill, he treats women like shiny new toys. I've seen him in action. Of course, I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but just days ago he was pestering me, and now he suddenly stopped and moved on. And I think it has everything to do with you. Were those flowers from him?"

"I didn't look," Lina said and hopped inside the Lincoln. She pictured herself driving down Route 66 listening to the Doors.

"Bet they were. He's chasing you. Men are like dogs. If there isn't a good chase involved, it's not worth it. And what did he mean by saying you're his? Don't say he didn't mean you. I know he did."

Sookie was too observant and Eric too loud to help themselves. Lina wanted to start up the engine and cruise the hell away from this Spanish Inquisition.

"It means that his age is getting to him. I thought you hated him and couldn't wait to get rid of him?" she asked and got out of the car.

"Gosh, yes."

"So why are we still talking about him, when there are much more pleasant things to discuss? Like boiling puppies and starving children for starters. You scared of facing Bill?"

And by that she managed to axe the conversation. Until they both heard the television on the shop wall.

"_Good evening ladies and gentlemen. My name is Eric Northman. I'm a tax paying American and a small business owner in the great state of Louisiana. I also happen to be a vampire. Now the past years there has been a lot of inflammatory…_"

Lina ripped the cord off the TV and it went silent. The sales assistant rushed to berate her once again and asked her firmly not to touch the electronics. Sookie fortunately didn't say a thing. He was everywhere she looked. Even the lovely cars looked like something he would buy. Or had already bought. They were contaminated.

Brooding she walked around the shop until she found exactly what she was looking for.

"I want that one."

"That one?" Sookie asked incredulously.

"It's perfect."

"That small… box?"

"Yes. It's cute, no? I have to have it."

"The Buick is much bigger…"

"Yes. But this is made for me."

"If you say so," Sookie sighed.

"Good man! Come over here!" she called out to the sales assistant, who was talking to a tall dark haired man wearing everything in black. "I'm taking this one. I'm driving it out of here today."

The tall guy looked at her direction, looked at the car she was pointing at and handed the sales assistant something without saying a word. The sales assistant thanked him profusely and assured that the man's client wouldn't be disappointed. Then the man walked right out of the shop and disappeared. Lina watched him go and memorized his face. There was something off about him.

When the sales assistant came up to them, the entire tone of his voice had changed.

"Yes, Miss. It's ready for taking."

"Thank you, how much?" Lina smiled at him and started to dig her purse for a checkbook.

"It's alright, Miss. You have store credit."

"What?"

"Yes, Miss. You can take the car, I'll manage the papers and have them delivered to your home. The tank is full so you don't even have to worry about that. May I just say, what an excellent choice you made!"

"I'm not sure if I'm quite following you," she muttered, although she had a terrible idea where all this nonsense was headed.

"Compliments of a Mr. Northman, the car has already been paid in full. Everything has been taken care of. He is your husband?"

Lina willed her fangs to stay in her gums, when she said the assistant, "My husband... I want you to rip his payment to microscopic bits and take my check."

"It is a gift, Miss. Sure you enjoy gifts?"

"Like a good long sunbath. Now be kind and answer me. How much for the Mini Cooper?"

* * *

They drove to the front yard of the Compton's mansion an hour later that night. Lina was secretly seething the entire ride, but she kept on her poker face and blasted the car radio happily, so that Sookie never had the opportunity to open any conversation about what just happened. Less talk about the subject and maybe the subject will disappear.

They were greeted at the door by a guard carrying a machine gun. Not the warmest welcome they'd ever received.

"This place sure has changed," Sookie whispered, while the guard spoke to a walkie-talkie asking for directions from the King. They were roughly ushered inside the house and left standing in an empty hallway.

"Bill?" Sookie called and tried to listen.

"They're upstairs," Lina said. Two voices were furiously whispering right above their heads.

"They?" Sookie said voice wavering.

"Yes," Lina whispered. She hoped it was not what she feared. Sookie didn't need it now.

She looked to the ceiling and checked the corners of the house but detected no cameras. No guards followed them inside and the door to his office was wide open. It was obvious that the King was enjoying his first year in the office and Lina was going to take full advantage on that. She needed information.

They walked upstairs with Sookie leading them towards the King's personal quarters. She smelled it before she saw it; Mr. Compton had been busy. Lina tried to figure out ways to distract Sookie, but it was too late. Sookie pushed the door open and revealed her guilty ex-boyfriend fastening his belt and a woman behind him was buttoning her blouse. While turning her eyes to the wall, Lina wondered why she always seemed to meet the vampire men in Sookie's life after some horizontal hula and why did she always had to smell the fresh evidence.

"Your snipers didn't mention you had company," Sookie said.

"Sookie, this is Katerina. Katerina is part of my security," Bill mumbled.

"Nice to meet you," Sookie said curtly and flashed the woman the fakest of smiles.

"Yes nice to meet you Katerina. Taking full advantage on the employee benefits, aren't you," Lina smirked at the human woman and earned herself a vicious blow to the ribs from Sookie.

Katerina looked from Bill to Sookie to Lina and finally decided it was time to go. The tense atmosphere in the room could've been cut with a knife.

"I'll follow her suit and give you two some time. Sookie, I'll be downstairs," Lina said to Sookie and turned on her heels with a small nod to the King.

She walked downstairs and straight to Bill's office. No cameras here either. She looked outside and saw that nobody was paying attention to her. It was almost too easy.

She sat by the computer and opened it. Password protected. She tried to hack it a few times, but gave up fast. On the neatly arranged desk there were empty files and papers like they were only there for show. She tried to open the desk drawers, but the ones that cracked only had cravats, TruBlood or other nonsensical mainstreaming manly items stuffed inside. Her gaze travelled to the new and sturdy looking drawers in the corner. They looked like they had some promise.

She walked to them and yanked. The lock gave up pretty easily and with minimal damage. Like she had guessed, there were a number of files arranged in an alphabetical order and she dived in searching for the letter "N". But the file wasn't there. She looked up again, but couldn't find it. She snatched a random file in her hand and saw that it indeed was an index of vampires living in the Louisiana area like she had suspected, but the one file she was searching for was missing.

All she needed was his address. She would have to get it some other way.

"Can I help you?" asked a bright voice behind her catching her by surprise. She had been too deep in her own thoughts and too concentrated on the guards outside and the chatter upstairs. She turned to see a cute tall vampire girl with fiery red hair looking at her expectantly. She closed the drawer slowly and smiled at the girl.

"No. My name is Lina. I'm new to this area and came to introduce myself to the King."

"Ok. Nice to meet you. My name is Jessica. Bill's… or the King is my maker," the girl laughed.

"Oh, that's nice. It makes you a princess, doesn't it," Lina babbled trying to see if the girl wondered what she was really doing here or not. "You must be quite young?"

"Yeah, only one year old. Baby vampire everybody tells me. How about you?"

"265.. or so."

"Wow. That's a lot. You're the second oldest vampire I've ever met actually. So, where's Bill?"

"On his way over here."

Sure enough, Sookie sprinted down and stopped straight in front of Lina. "Can we go? I told him about the problem."

"Sure, but can you wait for me outside for a little moment? I would like to have a few words with the King if it is ok?" Lina turned her gaze to Bill, who was watching her curiously.

"Yes, it is quite alright," he said looking at her hair like he was trying to catch a glimpse of her ears. Sookie must have spilled the beans about her already.

Jessica crashed on the living room sofa and Sookie marched outside. The two vampires stepped inside Bill's office and he closed the door behind them. _On with the show_, Lina thought and dropped on one knee and bowed her head.

"Your Majesty. My name is Aislinn Collett, Sookie's cousin from her great great grandfather's side. I pledge fealty to you as my King and wish to assist you in any way I can."

Bill stopped in front of her. He eyed the curious looking woman with interest. Few vampires felt comfortable kneeling in front of him, as he was so much younger than the most of them and had less strength. This woman was no exception, but she patiently waited for him to clear her with her head hung low. Sookie already told him what she was and what she was here to do. She was something she had never heard of before and he didn't know what to make of her.

"Rise. Take a seat."

Lina sat on the chair. They spent a few moments in silence both measuring the other. Lina was the first one to break it.

"You should know she still cares for you deeply."

Bill smiled. He didn't detect any danger in this woman. Her eyes were piercing and she radiated power, but that didn't concern him. "I know."

"Do you care for her?"

"I assume Sookie has told you all about me. So, of course, I do. I will always care for her."

"I need to ask a favor of you, your Majesty. You have to know that I wouldn't be talking to you about this, if I didn't think it was serious. I never go around my authorities, but I know that we both want what is best for Sookie and I feel that this can't be left unsaid. Can I trust you, my King?" she opened her eyes wide and bit her bottom lip.

Bill studied her face. She was young and although she didn't look like Sookie, he could see the resemblance. He could believe they were related, even if Sookie never told him. "Yes, you can tell me. I promise you no harm. You are her family."

"Thank you. I believe that Sookie already informed you of our problem."

"She did."

"So she must have told you that Sheriff Northman currently holds ownership over her home. I tried once to buy it back for Sookie, but he wouldn't sell it."

"Yes, he can be quite difficult in matters like that."

Lina smiled at his choice of words. _Difficult_ was a word she'd use too. "I've heard that there have been several vampires looking to harm Sookie in the past and I fear for her safety. Without owning the house, she can't even count on her home to keep her safe from similar attacks. I can and will protect her to my best ability, but sometimes that is not enough."

"I understand. How can I help you, Aislinn?"

"What I need is for you to convince Sheriff Northman to release the ownership over the house back to Sookie, so a human would once again own her home and vampires couldn't be able to enter without an invitation."

"I already told this to Sookie. I cannot force him to give up his property. He has too much influence and friends in high places. That includes the Authority." Bill gave her a meaningful look.

She closed her eyes and tried to seem like she was searching for words.

"I think you can probably guess that it is not merely the house that troubles us or even the other vampires. I want to keep Sheriff Northman out of her home."

Bill leaned back on his chair, face turning to stone. "Why is that? Has he done something that I don't know about?"

"He is harassing Sookie and as you know his attention is not wanted. Sookie is scared. He has voiced his desire to make her his, and I don't want my cousin treated that way with already so much choices taken from her. I think in a situation as dangerous as this it is important to put Sookie's safety first, claiming of humans second. What do you think my King?"

"I agree."

The next words she chose carefully. If Eric ever found out that she was here, she didn't want to seem lying. That wouldn't go well for her. "Sookie told me that she is yours. That at least when she left she was your human. Is that right?"

"Yes. It is."

"There is something else. I think you would like to know that Sheriff Northman almost attacked Sookie the second night she was back from Faery. He hurt her. There was slight bruising on her jaw, where he grabbed her. I beg you to take me seriously."

"You are certain of this?"

"Yes. What is more, Sheriff Northman has already told me about his lack of judgment regarding a vampire 3000 years old that was after Sookie."

"Yes, but he took care of the said vampire."

"Not in a way he was supposed to. Have I heard correctly that he was the one, who demanded the vampire to be left alive? After kidnapping you, harming Sookie and jeopardizing the entire agenda AVL had built on our behalf for the last ten years assuring our equality amongst humans? I come from France and even we saw his stunt on the evening news. My former Queen was quite upset about that. Many Kingdoms wanted him gone as quickly as possible, as you must know. He shouldn't have been left to live and I know it wasn't your call, my King. It was Sheriff Northman's. Things like concrete jails for impossibly old vampires do not hold forever. That is why I don't trust the Sheriff to make the right decisions when it comes to Sookie."

Bill brought his hands over his mouth looking thoughtful. "What is it that you're asking of me exactly?"

"I'm here to protect Sookie from fairy prince Breandan and he is nothing to be joked about. It would make my job hell of a lot easier, if I didn't have to fend off a 1000-year-old vampire Sheriff as well. If it is alright for me to suggest, it would probably be best to give him something else to do, at least for a while. In that way, he won't be able to interfere with my work here and it would keep him away from Sookie. Away from your human."

"I will handle him and see what I can do about the house. That I can promise."

"Thank you for your trust and time, my King." She bowed low and left his office. She hummed happily the entire way back to Sookie's house.

* * *

**A/N: Game on. THANK YOU LOVELY PEOPLE FOR READING :) Another update coming up soon...**


	9. Chapter 9

** CHAPTER 9**

Next evening, the tall, dark and mysterious was sitting under a tree in direct line of sight from Sookie's living room window. He seemed to have no worries in the world, while lounging there dressed in black jeans and black dress shirt. In his hands he held an expensive DSLR camera and in his mouth he chewed a straw of yellow grass. The arrogant bastard had been sitting there the whole day according to Sookie and refused to move. His dark messy hair partly hid his eyes as he watched her scowl at him.

It wasn't a surprise that he was here on Eric's orders. He was there to follow her wherever she went, take an occasional photograph and report what she was doing. She wanted to go strangle him, drain him and send him on a taxi to Northman's address. That is if she had found the address. Instead she sat on the living room sofa peering out of the window with narrowed eyes. The stranger just smiled.

As she spied him spy on her, she thought she was going insane with the wait of something to happen. Sookie had gone to work leaving Lina home alone with her thoughts and constant stabs of agitation. Had Bill already dealt with him? How did he plan to do it? Would he tell seeing her earlier? What happens when Eric gets angry? She knew she had taken a risk and perhaps made a mistake. She had no high hopes for Bill to be helpful at all, but it was too a juicy opportunity to let go. Now, sitting still was becoming more and more excruciating.

She hated feeling like a prisoner in this house. Her freedom was the most precious thing she had had for 250 years after her maker was gone. She had done what she wanted whenever she wanted with no obligation to please anyone. That was not going to end here in Bon Temps, Louisiana.

She got up from the sofa and marched upstairs. Picking out a dress for her next plan of action her hands touched different materials in her closet. It was time for a little outing. She had a promise to fulfill.

She took off her shirt and jeans, wearing only black lace underneath. Her body had the typical build of a fairy; soft femininity with a narrow waist and curves. However she had always been more petite than her girlfriends in Faery, which had her mother worried that she would never find a man good enough. Fairy woman's most important responsibility was providing an heir and securing the continuity of the family, and her mother scolded that her hips were too small and men would notice. Lina couldn't care now or then. She had had Frans.

Standing there in her lingerie, she heard voices in the house. Somebody was making his way upstairs. It wasn't a vampire; the steps were too heavy and the sound of a heartbeat was steady and strong. The tall, dark and overconfident had lurked behind her and stopped at the bedroom doorway.

"Are you trying to get yourself killed?" Lina asked the man without turning around picking out garments. She made no effort to hide her body.

A low voice answered, "I couldn't resist, when I saw you through the window. Miss Aislinn Collett, I'm the biggest fan of your work. Dance is the greatest form of art." His eyes travelled along her barely clad figure. "Mr. Northman is one lucky man."

Holding two dresses in her hands she peeked over her shoulder. The man was quite handsome. "Oh, I don't know about that. But will he be one happy man to know you're standing in my bedroom?"

"I like to bend the rules once in a while for a good cause."

"Do you now? If you like living dangerously, this might be the most dangerous you can get. I'm one ounce of anger away from having your blood. But since you're here, tell me; this…" In her left hand she had a midnight blue halter dress. "or this?" and in her right a sheer white sweetheart mini dress. She herself preferred the white one. It would serve her cause better tonight.

"The white one."

"Wise choice."

* * *

Good gods, the sight of so many fishnet stockings, chains and dog collars was slowly killing Lina inside. She parked her Mini in the Fangtasia parking lot and stepped out. What was new about the place was a crowd of people yelling profanities and praising the Lord fifty feet away from the front door of the bar. Vampire haters finally seemed to have found the Shreveport vampire mecca.

A big brown SUV and the tall, dark and intruding followed her loyally. He leaned against his car and dug out his phone, while smirking at Lina. She had let him live, for now. Maybe when she was feeling more murderous, he could be the perfect target to vent her aggression on.

Pam was standing outside alone glaring at the mob. There clearly was no love lost between the two opponents and the mob wasn't amusing her in the least. She was wearing a black and red ensemble that accented her chest, a corset wound up around her waist and black tight leather leggings that stopped just before her dangerous looking platform heels. She was dressed to kill.

Her eyes shifted to Lina, who was slowly making her way towards her. Pam's whole face changed and a surprised smile curved her plush lips.

"Miss Pam," Lina greeted.

"You should know I take rejection very badly."

"Then you should know it's not you, it's me. I'm sorry, something quite surprising came up." She stopped right next to her and cocked her hip. Her dress reached the middle of her thigh.

"I bet it did. You look teasingly innocent, you know that's called false advertising." Pam's hand touched the sheer helm. Lina was glad that the attraction between them hadn't died along with the big revelation.

"It's my own little rebellion against all the latex in the world. Why are these good people screaming at you?"

"Welcome to vampire nightlife post Russell Edgington," Pam said with a small edge in her voice.

"All that hatred. Jesus might have to die for their sins one more time."

"And ours," Pam grinned.

"Fair enough," Lina laughed.

_ Steve Newlin is right, you're devils of the night! You're going to hell! Steve Newlin is right, you're devils of the night! Vampire whores!_

Bigots will be bigots. Pam let out a blasé sigh. "Devils… but you look more like an angel, Miss Lina. My Master will be delighted to hear you're here. Sadly he's away at the moment."

_ Interesting. Maybe at Compton's?_ "And where might he be?"

"Some meeting with Compton."

Lina kept her fingers crossed. "Good. That's very excellent, but I didn't come here to see him."

"Really?" Pam grinned.

"I never promise, if I can't keep it, Miss Pam. It's a fairy thing not to eat our words."

"Well, that's the best news I've heard all decade."

"Shall we go inside?" Lina hinted.

"No. I'm in need of a good night out. These fucking idiots make me want to choke someone." Pam texted to another bouncer to take her place and gave Lina a sign to follow her.

They left Fangtasia for a glamorous club opening a few miles away. Bright spotlights circled the street and illuminated a sign above the large entrance. _Parkside Burlesque_ it said. There were a large group of clubbers waiting to get inside and even some reporters taking pictures and interviewing people about the exciting night. Pam and Lina walked straight inside without a word to the bouncer. He seemed to know Pam and respected her enough not to bother her as she went.

The club was two storied and there were exclusive booths on the balcony right above the big dance floor. Small tables formed a ring around it filled with horny bachelors checking out girls' asses as they shook what their mama gave them to the loud beat. The club was already swarming with sweaty dancers and drinkers, but people knew to make way immediately, when Pam walked towards them. Lina obediently followed her steps. Pam walked straight upstairs and stared at two businessmen persistently until the men sheepishly escaped to the bar and left Pam and Lina an empty booth to sit in.

"So, you're from the Victorian era. Very romantic. I loved the dresses." Lina said as she sat right next to Pam.

"You were there?"

"No, I was in Japan at the time, but I visited Britain for some missions for my Queen. I bought a few of those lovely pieces of garments, though." Lina directed her gaze to the finely decorated corset Pam was wearing. Her fingers brushed the patterns on it. "And I see you have hard time of letting go as well."

Pam flashed a big smile. "Once a prima donna…"

"I was turned in England a century before that. I had a bad habit of sneaking in the royal ballrooms drinking wine and dancing with taken men. Of course later that proved to be a very bad decision for me. It attracted unwanted attention." Lina frowned.

"It's a miracle you're here. Even now your sweet flowery scent dominates the space and I have hard time sitting still and not rubbing myself all over you. When were you turned?"

"Around 1750s."

"I see," Pam said thoughtfully. Her thoughts seemed million miles away.

"Why this bar?" Lina asked.

"Because I plan to have great fun tonight. And this is perfect for that," Pam looked at her in the eye. "You and my Maker. Mates, eternal love and possible baby Erics. Just so it's clear, I don't do nanny."

"Let's not ruin the evening with depressing topics like that one. The night is still young. We can still make our time very worthwhile." Lina's eyes gleamed.

"Don't tease me, vixen. You're off limits now."

"And how is that?"

"The father of your future babies forbad me to touch his dear woman. Not now or ever. Spoil sport."

Lina snarled. "That's not a verdict he can pass…"

"Unless it's a command."

"He wouldn't."

"Oh yes, he would."

"Like I said, it's depressing." Lina leaned her head against the backrest. "I suppose you're not willing to supply me any information about what's going on in his head right now?"

Pam turned to face her and searched her eyes. "Why are you fighting this? My maker is everything you can possibly want in a man. You're a fool not to accept him. Like I have said to your pesky human cousin time and time again, he pulls good strings."

"I will ask you the same question, when you have a man on your tail."

"Point proven," Pam chortled.

"And what are his intentions with my cousin?"

"He found a game to entertain him in Sookie. That god awful game is now over. Her telepathy is still valuable, but the obsession is finally gone. Or not gone… switched targets. You're putting his stalkerish habits onto a whole new level," she winked.

"Why do you say his game is now over?"

"Because with you my dear, he won't play with."

Lina didn't answer that. She watched the humans below them grind themselves against each other. Paparazzis took pictures, when two women kissed on the dance floor and men whistled and howled.

"But _we_ are going to play tonight, fairy princess." Pam whispered in her ear. "I can't touch you, but I want to watch you. It is my own revenge against his orders and maybe you can be just a little rebellious. He owes me the entire Prada spring collection for snatching you from me. I had so many plans for us already and I'm sad that I can't make them happen. Now, you're going to pick a meal and bring it back here. I'm going to get that brunette by the bar. You'll have five minutes. Go." She had an evil grin on her face, when she rose and went to the pretty human that had been checking them out with interest for the past 15 minutes.

Lina's eyes searched the crowd and fought against herself. She could participate in this little game, but would it be too risky? She was thirsty and frustrated enough to burst, but could she let her guard down in front of Pam? How much did she trust her? Also she saw nobody that interested her. None of the girls were of her taste and the men were more like college boys that didn't appeal to her in any way. She was ready to give up, when she saw familiar dark eyes watching her near the bar. The tall, dark and handsome.

Lina made her decision. She disappeared from the booth so that the man couldn't see her anymore. He was probably here to strictly watch her, but not to talk to her. His little transgression earlier couldn't probably happen in public. He was turning his head furiously from left to right searching, afraid that he lost her. She walked behind him as silently as her heels allowed.

"Hello stranger," she whispered in his ear.

He turned his head surprised and for a while he even looked guarded. He made no attempt to flirt back this time.

"I'm not allowed to touch you."

"I know, it appears to be a common theme among people near me these days," she walked straight in front of him and smiled wickedly.

"I take that rule seriously."

"I appreciate that. But do you know what? I have made no such deals. Only thing that is a shame is that you're a shifter. A lucky thing is that you don't smell of a dog. So, what is your… what do your kind call it… totem animal?"

"Totem animal?" he asked amused.

"You haven't heard the legend about old Indians?" The man shook his head. "They were said to be shifters and their totem represented the animal that was most characteristic of them and most natural for them to turn into. But I guess that's just what it is, a legend."

"A horse," his gruff voice said as he looked at her from head to toe.

She took his hand. "Alright then, not as bad as a dog. Follow me stranger."

"Where?" He stood up.

"My friend is asking us to join her and her friend upstairs in a booth. I want you to come with me."

"I shouldn't."

"And neither should I. Come."

The man hesitated more than once, but his dick was winning his inner debate. He liked what he had seen a few hours earlier. He liked it very much.

"You brought a man?" Pam asked disappointedly, when Lina and the tall, dark and eager reached the booth. Pam was lightly brushing the hair of the brunette beauty that sat next to her.

"You didn't specify that it had to be a girl. And I didn't like the other candidates."

Lina seated the man at the booth and jumped on his lap. His phone was vibrating non-stop, but he didn't seem to care, when he had her on his lap. Lina leaned forward and briefly touched Pam's lips with her own. Maybe she was going to regret this tomorrow, but now she decided to play along with it. She felt more in control than in a while, when almost everybody else in the booth had orders to restrict their actions. She had none.

"Tease," Pam whispered before turning her attention to the girl next to her.

Lina put her hands on both sides of the man's face.

"I really can't touch you," he whispered.

"But I can touch you."

She looked at him in his dark eyes before kissing his lips. His lips were soft and he had some real talent when he finally let go of his restraint and started kissing her back with gusto. Her mouth dominated his and her hands travelled down his toned chest. He was hard for her.

Her fangs descended and cut his tongue mixing a good amount of blood in their kiss. She sucked the wound greedily, before abandoning his lips to lick his neck. He was grinding himself against her trying to find relief, but for some reason Lina couldn't find much pleasure from what she was doing. She just planned to feed. His heart was bumping fast and arousal made his scent and blood much tastier. Her fangs sank into his neck. It felt good to have living blood at last and she moaned a little when it flooded her mouth.

A strong arm around her middle jerked her away violently.

The arm started squeezing her almost painfully pressing her close against a large chest and his familiar scent invaded her senses. She tried to wriggle away, but to no avail. Another arm squeezed the tall, dark and frightened one's windpipe and almost crushed his Adam's apple.

"What are you doing, little one?" his menacing hiss resonated right next to her ear.

* * *

**A/N: Aargh, a cliffie. I'm so so sorry... ;) Eric is not a happy camper. I wanted to write Lina doing some vampire stuff at last, but I hope she didn't annoy the hell out of you with her antics. Plus, I agree with ****_twibe _****who wrote in her review about her frustation****with heroines that usually just wait around stressing, while the man has his fun. Not on my watch, no way Jose.**

**Leave your thoughts and review! Thank you all for the best support. I promise lots more Lina/Eric scenes in future. Next update coming up in a few days.**


	10. Chapter 10

** A/N: I guess I never reminded you my lovely readers that this is a M rated story, for mature audience only. All who feel a small stab of conscience should reconsider reading further. This chapter contains violence, for example.**

** But those with clear conscience, on with the story!**

* * *

** CHAPTER 10**

The tall, dark and rather purple was kicking the air beneath him, when Eric lifted him up by his neck. His breathing was cut off in Eric's painful grasp causing a wheezing sound. The veins in his eyes popped coloring them blood red and his mouth was twisted into a silent scream. His hands desperately tried to fight the vampire's hold. He was running out of time. Lina stared at the scene before her horrified.

"Eric, you will kill him. Stop," she whispered. She fixed her gaze on his hand and tried to remove Eric's grip from the man's neck with her power, but Eric seemed to know it was coming. Moving fast he released his other arm around her waist and put it over her eyes keeping her head pressed tight against him. He denied her the eye contact she needed to save the man. A flash of panic ran through her, when she realized he knew how her power worked. _How could he know that?_ Her tiny hands grabbed around his wrist. "Eric, please!"

"Will you ever do that again, Aislinn?" he whispered so quietly that only she heard him. She felt his fangs scrape her forehead making her freeze, but not drawing blood. "You made the decision to go play with Mr. Chavéz, when you knew I wouldn't like it. Did you want to hurt him on purpose?"

Her nails scratched his arm, as she tried to force it off of her. She kicked his legs and tried to twist her body away from him, but he didn't budge. It did her no good. Her strength was nothing against his. She hadn't forgotten that she herself had wanted to strangle the man now fighting for air on more than one occasion, but not this way. _Not this way_.

"Answer me," Eric growled.

"I didn't," her small voice said hoping it would stop the madness. She stopped fighting him.

"Will you ever do it again?"

"No."

There was a loud thump, as Chavéz dropped on the floor, gasped and coughed. She heard violent burping sounds as the man struggled against vomiting his guts out. Lina couldn't see anything. She listened as his breathing slowly stabilized and how swallowing helped him heal. She knew she should tell him she was sorry that her behavior hurt him, but all that got out of her mouth was a weak sigh of relief. She was sorry he was hurting and she wanted to offer him her help. But there would be a cold day in hell before she apologized for kissing that man. Apologizing would make it sound like she was guilty of something. She wasn't.

"Get out of my sight," Eric said with the coldest voice she had ever heard. A chill crept up her spine. Lina tried to find her courage that had evaded her the second Eric stepped in the booth. She could be in for a world of pain. How much she actually knew about this man? And how long had it taken from her to go stepping on his toes? She must have left her common sense in Paris along with her survival instinct and intellect.

The man stumbled away hopefully towards a hospital. She felt Eric's other arm back on her waist pressuring her. He slowly stroked her through the light fabric of her dress, while his raw strength kept her pinned against him. She felt him breathing into her hair. She didn't even try to understand him.

"Let me see, Eric," she said, when she found her voice again.

His hand dropped from her eyes, but as she blinked in surprise that he conceded so easily, he took hold of her chin and turned her to face him. The look he gave her would make any brave man shake like a leaf. It reminded her about his reputation. There were few that had crossed him and lived to brag about it.

"I will strap you on my chest, if that's what I have to do to keep you from going behind my back." His voice was low and calm, but his blue eyes were like ice, as they bored into her. His grip of her only grew tighter. "I will repeat that treatment to every man you touch without hesitation. That should make you think before you act."

If she had felt scared for a moment of what he might do, it all evaporated as soon as the condescending words left his mouth. If he was expecting her to nod like a submissive little lamb, he was dead wrong.

"You have no right to hurt others because of my actions. And I sure as hell am not about to join Sisterhood just because you have issues," she hissed back through her fangs. She was done being afraid of him.

She had almost forgotten that Pam was still with them until she finally spoke up and walked up to Eric. The brunette human was nowhere in sight. "Yes Eric. She's not a nun and praise the Lord for that. Although I would buy her the costume, if she'd like to wear one for me."

Eric's glare showed that he was in no mood for his Child's witty quips. Without moving his eyes from Lina he spoke, "Pamela. You will open the bar tomorrow and wait for me in my office."

There was a hidden message in that statement that only the maker and progeny understood. It had Pam staring at Eric a moment eyes wide like saucers like he had greatly wronged her. Then her eyes narrowed and her voice bordered near defiance.

"I followed your rules to the point."

"You orchestrated this to spite me. Don't think that will go unpunished. Leave."

Pam stood still a second before giving Lina a quick glance. Her eyes were surprisingly warm. "Very well."

Lina watched her walk away. Running after her seemed very appealing. Away from this suffocating silence that she left behind. Her skin tingled, where Eric touched her.

"You and I have a lot to talk about." He sniffed her hair and her neck. Glaring at her lips like they'd betrayed him he snarled, "You smell of that shifter."

"Let me go, if it offends you that much."

He did. She took quick steps to the rail of the balcony, leaned forward and watched the people dance, while frantically pulling her thoughts together. Eric moved behind her to sit on the couch. He was wearing his usual attire; black leather jacket and jeans. He leaned back against the headrest and extended his long legs. Both retracted their fangs as a sign of temporary truce.

"Why Lina?" he asked calmly.

She wanted to be anywhere else but in this little booth surrounded by curious onlookers having this conversation. She could guess what he was going to say. She didn't want to hear it. "Is this really the place you want to discuss this?"

"Yes. What we just witnessed will stop here."

She directed her glare at the bouncing teenage girls. She was too furious to look at him in the eye. "Don't feed me your double standards. I care about them no more now than I did in the 17th century, where they belong." She watched the girls giggle and flirt with boys and couldn't stop picturing them on his office table spread eagle.

"Like you have been a saint?" she hinted and turned to see his reaction. There wasn't any. He didn't deny it, although she wasn't completely sure he had heard her the way he was staring at her ass. She sneered.

"Didn't think so."

"I will stop today."

"And why would you do that? I'm not asking you."

"It was disrespectful towards you. And disrespecting you is the last thing I want to do. Believe me or not."

She faced him. The way he was watching her was very distracting. Her traitorous body was already forgiving him in earnest. This was one of the times she was glad her heart had stopped a long time ago. At least her dead heartbeat couldn't reveal him how nervous and conflicted she was.

"If you have needs, you are to come to me. If it is blood, sex or anything you need, you will turn to me," he said looking in her eyes.

"Don't lie awake waiting for me."

Eric rose on his feet with intention to come near her, but was stopped before he reached her. She built up a wall between them. She didn't want him any closer.

"I like you where you are. No need to creep here."

Eric smirked. "You don't trust yourself, little one?"

"I don't trust you. You enjoy overwhelming me on purpose."

His smirk only grew wider. "I can't help it, although it is a lovely ally. I happen to like how responsive your body is to mine. It's not a bad thing, as you will come to see. All the more proof you should stop fighting me, Lina." He opened his hands as if that would make him seem more innocent.

"Let me closer to you, and I might listen to your wishes. Within reason."

He watched her bit her lip reviewing her options. They were in public. He couldn't hurt her here or it would become a vampire PR disaster. The wall dropped, but she turned her back on him. With a few slow steps he was standing right behind her.

"I will not catch you by surprise. You will know the exact moment I'm going to take you. But do you have any idea how much control I have to muster to wait for it. Especially seeing you in that dress."

He trapped her between the railing and his body. His arms rested against the railing on both sides as he leaned over her. She could feel the evidence of his less than stable control pressed against the small of her back, and he sighed contently. He was doing it again. Distracting her. It was scary how he made her resolve crumble more every time they saw each other. Mating was said to come naturally. She was more and more afraid how right they were to insinuate that. Her subconscious kept whispering how right it felt to be near him.

He spoke to her ear, "I will give you time. You will finish your duty to the Prince and keep Sookie safe. I will help you. But she is not going to be your responsibility after the fairy war is over and you are not going back to being an enforcer ever again. I will end your obligations to Queen Meng Xi of Japan. They'll have to heed to my wishes. My claim will override any sworn allegiance and your blood promise to your former kin."

It was his overbearing words that kept her sane. It was easier to hate him, when he tried to patronize and boss her around. She opened her mouth to yell at him, but his finger touched her lips and shushed her. _Arrogant, high-handed asshat. _She could come up with a dozen new ways to end him that would bring her pleasure.

"When the Faery portal is closed, I will claim you. I've decided I want you for myself and you can't do anything to divert me from claiming what is rightfully mine. I suggest you stop fighting it now, because it will save your energy and stop distracting you from your duty."

It was becoming harder and harder to breathe. She was glad she didn't need oxygen. Panicking was much easier and controlled that way. She knew this was coming, but hearing him say it brought on an anxiety attack of a whole different scale. Her mind went through all the escape routes she thought she had.

"If you try to escape, I will come after you. If I find that you are still scheming against me, I will take you before you are able to finish your job. Do not try to hire someone to harm me, because that would only make me angry. You will not touch any other man, while you're still living at Sookie's house. You will report me any possible threat against you and keep yourself from doing anything radical that would put you in danger. I will not force you to have my blood now, but if you're not doing this for me, I will."

"Eric, don't do this," she whispered. "I will give you money. My family has great riches. I make a good income from managing _Mirage_ and we have a world tour coming up in a few months that makes a lot of profit. I will give you my power to use anytime you want without putting up a fight. I do have obligations in Asia and Paris, but I would drop everything, if you needed me. Just don't do this."

She was pleading again and she hated every second of it. It made her feel vulnerable. She could call Meng and ask for protection, but even Meng was not allowed to keep her away from him. Even if Lina went hiding in her Queendom. She would be obligated to find and return her immediately. This Lina knew because, when Isibil and Matthias fought brutally, Isibil had asked for Lina to hide her. That had almost cost Lina her own life. She was not allowed to interfere. Now she could call the most fearsome enforcers, who owed her, but they would only be forced to turn their backs on her. Her only option lied in Faery. If Niall would just get her through the Portal, she would do anything.

"Shhh now, I will not take your money, little one. I have already heard these offers once before and I didn't take them then. I was also offered your cousin."

_ Sookie_. "I can't offer you her. Her life is not mine."

"And it will not be mine either."

Who had offered this? Who had the power to offer any of this? She froze, when it finally hit her. How could Eric have found a way to contact him? The thought seemed impossible. That Niall knew about her situation here in Bon Temps and hadn't offered to help her? He wouldn't do that to her. Not after everything she had done for him. Not after centuries of risking her life for him and his agenda. He would find a way to get her to Faery. If her life was threatened this way, he would do anything to help her and that included turning the public opinion about her in Faery. He was her grandfather. He loved her. Now he hadn't even called her to see, if she was ok. If Sookie was ok. She had thought it was because of the war.

"How did you know that my power depended on eye contact?" she rasped.

He confirmed her fear. "I know your grandfather and I know much about your kind."

"You know Niall?"

"Yes, and you should be pleased to find out he has already given me his blessing."

Her small hands gripped and dented the railing. She squeezed her eyes shut trying to shut out the harsh pangs of betrayal. Compartmentalize the sadness away and focus on anger. She felt his finger tenderly stroke the hill of her cheekbone, sliding up her nose and across her forehead. His finger traced her upper lip. She felt his cheek press against the side of her head.

"You are not going to Faery, when the Portals close. I have his word."

"Do you hate me some much that you have to do this to me?"

"I'm pretty sure I could never hate you."

Her voice was picking up volume. "Don't do this. You don't even know who I am. How could you want a total stranger?"

"I know a lot about you. I know that you have survived by yourself more than 250 years in a world foreign to you without a maker to guide you. I know you learned to take care of yourself quickly and learned to protect those near to you. Especially your close friend Isibil, who is also a mated vampire, and your cousins, who you still do business with. I know you are cunning, brave and intelligent. You do what you have to do to stay alive. You have a successful career, the most renowned vampire enforcers are said to respect you and people around the world admire your work and talent. I have seen you dance Aislinn. I can see how passionate you are about it."

His hand rested on her stomach and caressed her hipbone. He hid his face in Lina's hair and breathed in her scent.

"You take care of your dancers like they are your family. You pay them handsomely and look after their health and family. You've never turned your back against your own kind, even though they exiled you. You do not need Faery to live a full happy life."

He softly drew his nose up her jaw, pushed her hair away from the left side of her neck and licked her pointed ear. Strong shivers rode through her body and she couldn't stop the whimper. He pressed tighter against her back.

"You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen, and I can't wait to have you in my life."

Lina was losing herself. Her body molded against his until he cocooned her in his arms. She had to concentrate, but nothing had ever been this difficult. One moment he spoke of possession, another about being proud of her and taking care of her.

"You want something that I can't give you," she said.

"Yes you can, if you tried. You've done nothing to learn how your life could be if you were mine."

"You conveniently forget that I know how a mated couple works. I've witnessed it first hand and I despise it. You will take my free will! You will be able to command me and control where I go, who I see and what I do. You ask me to give up my whole life for you. Well, Eric, I have already given up so much that I barely have anything left!"

His hand caressed her throat, when he tried to soothe her. She felt like a small, frightened animal he was trying to tame. "I'm not taking your life. I'm giving you a new one. One in which you don't have to trust only yourself to keep you safe. I will become your family. I will give you everything you want. I could even give you something no one else can. Our blood bond will help you learn my body and mind as I will learn yours."

"But you will not ever let me go," she stubbornly objected.

"No."

"You will keep me shackled to your side even if I didn't want it. If you think I will just sit and wait for that to happen, you don't know me at all. You are only standing there because I allow it."

"Shush now, your empty threats will only aggravate me." He accentuated his words by pressing his groin more firmly against her lower back. Lina could feel how hard he was for her and it was making her body react in response. She had to get out of here.

She felt his hand on her leg travelling up, his fingers trailing her inner thigh. They came dangerously close to her panty line. She heard him groan as if in pain. He took his hand from under her dress to keep her covered from curious eyes, but he placed his hand directly back cupping her through the dress. Her breath hitched and eyes widened. Her pupils dilated.

"You are going to be wet for me. More wet than you've ever been for anyone else and only I can make you come as hard as you will. Your body already submits. What is stopping your mind, my Lina?"

He slowly rubbed her through the fabric. Her breath came out as pants. It felt too good. She was burning.

"No. Eric. You promised me time."

He was back lapping her ear. "You have to get used to my attention. I'm not going anywhere. Let go of your control for just a little while."

"No, not here. Not here." She smelt her own arousal permeate the air. Her fangs snapped down in hope of something to bite.

"And what you did earlier was ok to happen here?" he murmured. "Let go."

A bright flash of a camera caught their attention.

Two paparazzi were taking pictures of them from the dance floor below. The two eagerly spoke to each other and Lina could see them mouth Eric's name and what was more alarming, they even knew hers. Those pictures could not end up in Europe. She was a very private person and never revealed anything from her personal life to the press, when they interviewed her about upcoming tours and shows. Her mind cleared, because of this threat. She was getting those cameras.

"Eric, get off me." He was still holding her standing unmoving as he stared at the two men. Lina couldn't decipher the look in his eyes. "Eric, I will hurt you if you don't move. Now!"

He snapped from whatever coma he had temporarily fallen into. He stepped away from her, but stopped her from going after them.

"I'll get those photos."

He took off in vampire speed and Lina followed him downstairs. He snatched the cameras from the stunned paparazzi's hands and removed the memory cards stuffing them into his pocket. Without saying a word he handed the cameras back to the men, took hold of Lina's hand and started dragging her outside. This manhandling was getting to the last of her nerves. She jerked her hand away and crossed her arms as they strode out of the bar.

"You will destroy those memory cards," she commanded.

"Yes," he responded casting her glance. They were in the parking lot and Lina was glad to get to her car. Sookie must be home already.

"Did you like the flowers?" he asked grinning.

"Yes thank you they were very nice, you shouldn't have," she replied monotonically.

"Did you read the card?"

"No."

"That's rude."

"I am rude. Sookie doesn't shut up about it."

She walked to her Mini that was parked right next to his Corvette and opened the door. Eric walked to the other side of the car and looked inside.

"Why in hell would you buy this thing? It looks pathetic."

"No bashing my car."

"I don't think I could even fit in this thing," he muttered mostly to himself.

"I know, isn't it great," she said eyes gleaming. She absolutely fucking loved this car.

Eric gave her an amused look. "Before you go you need to know that I'll be picking you up tomorrow at Sookie's house after sunset."

"Whatever for?"

"You're going to help me take down some witches. You should know, because you got us this job."

She wasn't hundred percent sure what he was talking about, but she had a hunch. She decided to play stupid and stare at him eyes blank.

"Don't be coy. I know you went to visit our formidable king with your stories. He didn't need to tell me who had been manipulating his tiny mind. He bought those stories so well. I was angry at first. You really thought I wouldn't know? You sneaky little thing."

"Fine." She climbed in her car and slammed the door shut. She started the car and drove off.

What happened next she hadn't exactly planned. While driving away from the club and musing over what had happened, she made a snap decision and took a fast left driving into the parking lot of a gas station. She didn't have a tail anymore. She was pretty sure the shifter was fired. Leaving her car locked tight, she jumped out and took off in the air.

* * *

Eric reached his home a twenty minutes after watching his mate drive off. He was deep in thought and dug out his phone. The Corvette locked itself behind him, when he walked to the massive front door of the three-storied house. There was one new message waiting. One message he had been waiting for the whole day.

_ "Monsieur Northman. I ran into a few problems. I discovered that she lives in Italie 13 that is the southern part of the 13th arrondissement with highest residential skyscrapers of Paris. Her apartment is the penthouse of a 38 floor building without any fire escape and with high security against any intruders. Her apartment door requires vampire blood to open and a 7 digit combination. That I have been able to crack, but the problem is that the apartment is a rental. As a vampire you need the permission to enter from the real owner, as you very well know. I could get a human inside the place, but we still need either Mademoiselle Collett's or the owner's permission to touch or move her things._

_ "But getting to the real owner is another trick entirely. He is imprisoned in a psychiatric hospital in Saint-Maurice. No visitors allowed. I'm sorry Monsieur, but she seems to know what she's doing._

_ "I've looked inside the apartment. She doesn't own very much and the interior design is very minimalistic. Only items that are attention worthy and might mean something to her are the expensive paintings and a grand piano in her living room. I will send you a list of all items and inform you again, when I reach the real owner. Au revoir." _

He wasn't sure, if he should be happy to learn that his mate really knew how to keep herself safe or pissed that she had made all much more difficult for him. If he had been paying attention, he would've noticed something quietly land onto the roof of his house. Lina checked her own phone and saved the address to her GPS system just in case.

* * *

**A/N: I loved writing this chapter. I freaking loved it. How about you, did you like it?**

**I have an exam coming up on Monday, so the next update will take a while. I'll try to get it posted a week from now at the latest. Stupid school getting in the way of daydreaming...**


	11. Chapter 11

** CHAPTER 11**

Pam was standing in Eric's office at seven o'clock next night. She had been standing there in her Fangtasia uniform for over a half an hour staring at his locked drawers and safe, which held all the information he had gathered about his latest and greatest obsession yet. Never had he gone to such lengths for a woman. Even with Sookie he had patiently waited for Bill to fuck up royally, before making his move.

Pam understood why he chased her, but she couldn't help but think that this could end very badly for all parties involved. Their life here in Louisiana hadn't been exactly peaceful for the past couple of years since Sookie and her fairy cunt appeared at their doorstep. But now one of the most followed female vampires had joined the party and undoubtedly dragged another legion of unwanted visitors with her.

Pam had read the gossip about Eric's little Lina yesterday before rest. The dancing, flirting, racy fair headed beauty of Paris. That was the image media gave off of her, but nobody actually knew what she did when she wasn't managing her business affairs or dancing on stage. No one actually knew what was weird about her or how she managed to keep her life private. Obviously no one cared in the vampire monarchies when the girl paid high tribute for her privacy and endorsed the good image of vampires with her work. It must have something to do with her little quirk, but there also must be somebody working with her. Lobbying and greasing the wheels, so to say. Or handing out death threats.

Pam wondered how long it would take for someone to come after her and how long it would take for her maker to get hurt in the process. She surprisingly liked the girl and wouldn't mind having some time alone with her, but she was a liability.

Another thing she was worried about was what she heard her say the day before. Lina was turned in Britain in 1750 or so. Pam wasn't around that time, but Eric was. And if she remembered correctly, he was right there, serving the King of England. He must have known the girl's maker. It was almost too much of a coincidence.

The door opened and Eric walked in with furrowed brows without acknowledging her. The bond between them hummed with slowly building anger pouring off him in waves. The talk with his little fairy must not have gone like he wanted.

"You're still angry. Did you not get what you wanted yesterday?" Pam drawled.

"Not now."

He started the computer and sat there with a hand over his mouth. Pam still felt unjustified to get punished, but she let it slide. _This time_. But she had to tell him, what was bothering her even at the expense of her getting spanked, humiliated or denied feeding on humans afterwards. If her memory didn't fail her and it never did, it was in the great Kingdom of England her maker first tasted fairy blood.

"Master, I have some things I'd like to talk to you about," she said again taking a more serious tone.

"I said, not now."

_ Fine, have it your way_, she thought and looked at her nails.

After four long minutes Eric sat up and turned the monitor, so Pam could see the computer screen. He had clicked open the same French gossip website she had been reading the night before, but the front page was now filled with fresh headlines. One of the breaking news stories was of whom else but their ill-fated Miss Collett.

In the picture above the story, Lina was holding the hand of the shifter from yesterday and smiling sweetly. She was leading him towards their booth ready to play dirty and sink her fangs in his neck, but the picture had caught them both smiling at each other like two cherubs. Looking like a happy couple at a happy soirée. Pam almost snorted.

Reading the article, she couldn't but roll her eyes. The author of the gossip article said "_people witnessed them being very close and now it had everybody wondering if this sexy mysterious man was the reason for Lina Collett's abrupt trip. She had never been seen with anyone before, so this could be serious_". They sure made Lina sound like their virtuous golden girl. How in the name of justice did she pull that off? The pixie must have rainbows shooting out of her snatch.

But seeing her maker's reaction to this little gossip was like a really bad punch line to a really bad joke. She knew that what the fairy did had ticked her maker off big time, but this was getting ridiculous.

"And this is my fault? Paparazzi probably smelled money, when they saw her and sent the picture to France. Some of good old pervs probably have their walls plastered with her face and are jerking off as we speak. Does that really bother you?"

Eric was staring at the picture his eyes glued to Lina's smile. Pam was all at sea. She didn't know if he was even listening to her.

"You're acting like an insecure boy. It is not sexy."

In his hand Eric held something small that he rolled between his fingers. It looked like a memory chip or a SIM card or whatever.

"I thought your little infatuation with Sookie Stackhouse had you doing unbelievably stupid things. But this is something else entirely. You need to get your head straight before that fairy becomes a gun to your head." And with that she walked out of the door without waiting for him to punish her somehow or retaliate against her words and without telling him about her worries. He could handle them himself, if he ever found his balls again.

* * *

"_You've reached Brigant. Leave a messag…_" Lina cut the call short before it could reach his voicemail. Hell, if she was going to talk to a machine.

His phone was never turned off. Never. Lina didn't know if she should be worried or irritated.

She tried to rationalize all this, before she put her fist through the wall and cried on the floor like a helpless child. Eric could've been lying to her for all she knew, when he spoke to her about Niall. About how her grandfather had already left her behind without even having the decency to come tell her the news himself. Eric could've wanted her to get all riled up and emotional so it would be easier for him to weasel in and control her decisions. No doubt he wanted it to seem like he had backed her up against the wall and she had no other choice, but to offer her neck to him. And how easy had she made it for him last night. Standing there cradled in his arms and listening to him talk sweet words about her life, how easy had it been to lull herself into thinking he had her, he was right and he knew what was best for her.

Of course his words had an effect on her. She would have to be a deaf-blind she-monster made of stone, if it didn't please her to hear how he thought she was beautiful and brave. How he admired her for making it big all by herself. He was pushing the right buttons, Lina had to give him that. If it had been any other man, she would have hopped on the railing begging and mewling for him to ravish her hard no matter who was filming it.

But then again, maybe there wasn't a single honest bone in his body. There would be no other way for her to find out than talk to her grandfather. She dialed his number again just to be asked to leave a message after the fucking beep.

Her evening didn't start in the best way possible. She woke up dreaming again, but only this time it wasn't the nightmare she was already used to having. This day she dreamt of _him_.

Even remembering the dream had her panting all hot and bothered. Bothered somewhat because she refused to touch herself thinking of that dream, but mostly because she had no idea why her own body wanted to punish her this way.

In her vivid dream, he was there with her. Inside her. He was kissing her neck and whispering in her ear, while thrusting in and out of her in slow but deliberate pace. One of his hands was wound in her hair and the other pressured her hip. He had her moaning his name.

She tried to arch her back in pleasure, but he wouldn't let her move an inch. Just rammed into her more forcefully every time she bucked and trashed. His hard body covered hers beneath him and she felt so secure. She screamed when he finally bit her neck making her convulse around his length. He was calling her his.

She woke up confused, her hand instinctively reaching for him. Her inner thighs were soaked in her own juices and even the sheets were damp. She looked around the room disoriented searching for him. She had never felt more embarrassed in her life, when she realized he wasn't there. She was there all alone coming in her dreams like a thirteen-year-old human boy.

When she had dressed and climbed up the stairs of her cubby, she was welcomed with a harsh sneer. Sookie's friend was sitting on the living room sofa. Tara was her name, she thought. The woman hated her with every cell of her being and made it very clear she wanted Lina out of Sookie's house and "back to whatever fucked up realm she crawled from. Sookie didn't need her shit in her life." A nice lady. Lina remembered that this was the girl who had been hypnotized by the maenad and kidnapped to Mississippi by a deranged vampire. She left her wallowing in her own hate.

Third sucky thing was that her blood was running low. There were only two bags left. She'd gorged the blood in the matter of days. Sookie had been kind enough to buy her TruBloods, but she would touch those only in a case of emergency.

"_You've reached Brigant. Leave…" _

Now, she was sitting on her bed in the upstairs room dressed in her favorite jeans and basic white top. Her brown leather jacket was hanging beside the door waiting for Eric to pick her up. She hadn't forgotten his orders last night, but this night it would be about getting work done. Two more or less former enforcers going against a coven. No funny business. Her hair was braided in case the job involved spilling blood.

She was getting bored and she thought what was taking Eric so long. He had said after sunset, right? She decided to call Isibil to kill time. It was near dawn in Germany, but she would be up.

"What do you want?" a gruff unfriendly voice barked, when the line picked up.

"Well hello Matthias, always a pleasure to hear your friendly voice. Is Isibil there?"

"Yes, what do you want?"

"Give her the phone you little prick. I'm in no mood for this," she said trying to remember she was holding something breakable in her hand.

"Sun is about to rise. She doesn't have time to talk," he growled to her.

"If you don't give her the phone I will make it my business to fly there, rip off your hand with the phone attached to it and hand it to her personally. Your choice," she growled back.

"_Wer ist es_?" a distant voice asked. Isibil.

"It's the greatest bitch of France," Matthias said answered her. How charming.

"_Bitte_ _gib mir mein Handy zurück, Matthias!_ Lina? How are you?"

"The greatest bitch of France… Nice that you recognized me by that nickname. Can you get away from the Neanderthal for a few minutes?"

"Sure." Lina heard her softly speak to her husband. "What's up? And who's the hunk?"

Lina lifted an eyebrow. "The hunk?"

"You damn well know what I'm talking about. Even I heard the gossip… or that might be because I'm your biggest fan," she laughed. "But I saw the picture, so spit it out!"

_ A picture_. Lina felt blood drain from her face. She lost her voice. Eric had promised her he would destroy the footage.

"What hunk?" her voice peeped.

"You know, the brown hair, tan skinned hottie. Who is he?" _Oh_. _Oh-oh._

"What's in the picture?" she asked relieved. Or not relieved depending on the picture. If it was of her sucking his neck there would be a hell to pay.

"You two, sweetly holding hands. I never believed you a sappy girl, but here I stand corrected." Isibil sounded cutely excited about this. She was the one always finding her _good men to keep her happy and satisfied_. Lina was dreading to tell her what had been waiting for her here in Louisiana all this time. Isibil would probably squeal, congratulate her, throw a party and team up with Eric. Mmm, no thank you_._

"Just holding hands?"

"What? You mean there's lots more? Gimme the details!" she giggled.

Lina laughed. "No details. Had his blood and sent him off." With angry bruising around his neck caused by a furious potential mate. No need to add that.

"You're getting boring."

Lina snorted. "I promise you that's not it. Err, Isibil. Can I ask you a favor?"

"Sure thing, sweetie."

"Do you think you're able to check your phone every… let's say… three days and see if I've texted or called? Just to check that everything's ok?"

"Why?" she asked hesitantly. She knew Lina still went on missions for their mentor, but she had never sounded worried about those missions. She always came back unharmed.

"There might be something… dangerous going on here in Louisiana. I was just thinking that if you could check your phone and see if I've contacted you. By that you could know I'm ok and nothing's happened to me. If I haven't contacted you in three days… could you contact Meng?"

"That bad?"

"Possibly worse…" Lina's voice trailed off.

"Do I need to come there? Lina, I could help you."

"No no no. It's probably nothing. And you know I can take care of myself right? It's just that IF something happens."

"You have my word, _oneesan_."

"Thank you," Lina sighed.

"Dawn's near."

"I'll let you rest. You're dear to me. See you soon."

"See you soon." The call ended.

Lina stared at the phone. Still no sign of Eric. He had her number if he decided didn't need her for this job.

Pacing the room she called Niall again. This time she would leave a message loud and clear.

"_You've reached Brigant. Leave a message after the beep_."

"I don't know what I've done to deserve this, old man. But if you don't start answering your phone…"

"I'm not answering my phone because I was coming to see you," said a voice by the door. She turned around surprised. That old man was possibly the only person in the world, who could sneak up on her. He made teleportation an art form.

There he was standing in his signature white suit holding a walking cane only for appearance sake. His long pale gold hair was brushed back and wound in an elegant ponytail. Her grandfather was helplessly stuck in the 1800s. He hardly ever bothered hiding his ears from view nowadays as he usually kept to their own race. Public appearances in the world of humans were few and far between. All communication with him usually worked via phone or texts. She hadn't even seen him in 46 years.

But how she remembered him was very different from the man standing in front of her now. Usually his face was brightened by a wide smile that showed the few wrinkles around his kind eyes. He was no man to start messing with, but to his own kind he was the great father figure. Of course with so many fairies deceased he was one of the oldest fairies alive and, like Lina, many fairies alive today could be proud to be of his direct lineage.

He came to see her carrying a briefcase. His face was serious and troubled. Niall troubled meant exponentially more trouble for Lina.

When she recovered from the shock of seeing him, she rushed before his feet kneeling and lowering her head. She spoke in Old Irish.

"Grandfather."

Niall stood still a moment before to her utter astonishment he lowered the briefcase and cane to the ground and dropped on his knees right in front of her.

"Child. Don't you ever kneel before me again, do you hear me?" He took hold of her cheeks and turned her face to him. His blue green eyes were sad and Lina had to fight her raging feelings to keep calm. Niall sad meant a world of heartbreak for her.

"This is it? This is goodbye?" she whispered. "You are leaving me here?"

"This is not a goodbye, Linn. You will see me again. I only come bearing gifts. Come sit with me. Crawling on the floor doesn't suit you."

He took her hand and lifted her up. Then he took the briefcase and led her to sit on the bed. His eyes never left her. He spoke to her about the situation in Faery, which is heading near its close. The danger he believed that Sookie was in proved to be near nonexistent. Breandan was losing his forces rapidly and his power was diminishing. It was only a matter of weeks that the peace could be declared amongst their kind. Neither of Niall or Lina mentioned the Portals. Lina hid her bitter thoughts and looked out of the window.

"First I want you to know that nothing is holding you here anymore. You are free of any obligation, if there ever was any. Go now and disappear. I have everything you need in this briefcase."

He opened the case to reveal a stack of bills in various currencies and numerous documents.

"I… I don't need any money," she stuttered staring at the contents of the briefcase eyes wide.

"Neither do I," Niall said firmly. "I'm leaving the most of what I own to you. There are accounts in Switzerland now transferred under your name. My house in Ireland is now yours, if you decide to go back there ever again. There is a separate check for Sookie that you must give her before you leave."

Her mind was running a mile a minute.

"I'm not leaving," she finally sighed.

"What? You want to be with that vampire?" Niall almost growled.

"There's no point. This world has its limits. I could never run fast enough. I'd rather not run at all and besides," She thought of Sookie; the girl she had quickly grown very fond of. "Sookie is here. I don't want to leave her. Of course I'll have to go back to France eventually to take care of my businesses, but I don't want to disappear from her life, if I can't come with you where you're going. Frans and Claude are leaving. There's really nobody else." Her voice broke at the end.

"What about the Empress?"

"Well, she and Isibil. Do you remember Isibil? You saw her once."

"Yes. She is the one with the obnoxious vampire mate."

"Obnoxious is too kind a word," Lina grinned. Niall smiled back.

"Linn, I owe you so much that I can never hope to pay back." He handed her two small cards. "Here are the two persons I trust in this world with their contact information. One of the contacts lives here in the U.S., but in Florida. From him you can get everything you need to vanish from the human and vampire records. He holds all information this world has to offer under his thumb. Every gadget there is for hacking into security systems and databases."

_ Andrew Slater_.

"The other contact lives in Romania. She is a powerful witch, who owes me a great favor. You are welcomed into her coven any time you wish. She will make you disappear. The vampire can't approach her."

_ Codruta_.

Lina's ears picked the sound of a car coming up the driveway. It stopped in front of the house and one person got out. Eric. Lina's hands quickly threw the cards in, closed the briefcase and put it on the floor. Niall noticed the sudden change in her behavior and raised an eyebrow.

"He's here. Is there anything else?" she whispered anxiously.

But it took only a few seconds and they were faced with the vampire sheriff. He was noticeably surprised to see who was here in her bedroom with her. She saw his mouth twitch. Seeing him now after last night and after her wild dream made her stomach flutter.

"Brigant," Eric said standing by the door. His eyes flicked from Niall to Lina and back again. He seemed to be analyzing the situation. Thinking how to react. Should he come between them? What had Niall told her? What was in the briefcase? He clearly decided to get her out of the situation as quick as possible. "Aislinn, come. We need to go."

Niall rose on his feet. He was almost as tall as Eric and his age hadn't affected his commanding presence. "Just give me a minute with my granddaughter, Mr. Northman. Then I'll be on my way and she's all yours…" Niall smoothly said not at all surprised to see him tonight. Lina gave Niall a dark look. His morbid humor was not appreciated here. "Maybe you could wait downstairs."

Eric made no move to go. Instead he leaned against the doorframe and stared at Lina. His gaze travelling her body up and down his eyes caught something that he hadn't seen before. The right side of her neck. The ravaged side.

Lina wanted to raise her hand to hide the scars, but it was too late. She watched his eyes darken as if in fury, but he didn't say anything. Instead Niall raised a hand to touch the scars, while looking at Eric his eyes conveying more than words could. Lina turned to her grandfather and spoke again in old Irish.

"_I need to go. I will contact you if I need anything. Thank you for all that you've done for me_."

Niall leaned forward and kissed her forehead.

"_Be safe, dear Linn_. _I will stay and wait for my great great granddaughter._"

Lina smiled to him and took the briefcase. In her other hand she took the jacket and walked past Eric without saying a word. She walked downstairs and opened the cubby. Eric followed her quietly. She put a hand over the panel hiding the numbers, when she put in the combination that opened the silver latch.

"Will I need my _katana_?" she asked Eric without looking at him.

"No."

She nodded and disappeared down the steps. She put the briefcase under the bed and put on the jacket. The soft collar covered her neck. When she came back out and started walking towards the front door she felt his hand on the small of her back.

"What was in the briefcase?" Eric murmured.

"My inheritance."

* * *

**A/N: This, ladies and gentlemen, is me doing everything I can so that I wouldn't have to touch the exam materials. :D I've also considered cleaning the windows of my apartment more than once. I know I promised an update later next week, but when it comes to school, I am the queen of all procrastinators and I decided to post another chapter a bit earlier. **

**Everybody, thank you for reading and following this story! You make writing so much more exciting. And can I just hug all of you for the reviews I've got? :)**

**Next chapter is the Moon Goddess Emporium. BUT I've got bad news for you who are expecting a cute Eric suffering from memory loss... I would love him like that as well, but I have two reasons, why it can't happen in this story. Although I've entertained the thought many many times:**

**1. Lina would walk all over him. In this current mind set she would help Pam get his memory back but she would definitely bargain a deal never to tell him about her existence. Ever. She would disappear. Then I would have to write about them meeting decades later by accident and start all over again. It wouldn't work...**

**2. He's going to be way hotter with all his memories. Plus, he didn't really impress me in the series with the way he acted at the MGE. At all. He made me facepalm. God I loved the TruBlood Eric in S01- S03, but after that I've had some issues with his (or Alan Ball's) choices.**

**Ok, the rant is over. Thanks again!**


	12. Chapter 12

**CHAPTER 12**

Lina was sitting in his Corvette, feeling the oh so soft leather of her seat and sticking her head out of the window feeling the fresh air blow past her face, as they sped ahead. The car purred like a kitten every time he accelerated and it made Lina want to purr right along with it. This car was made to get your blood boiling and heart racing. The sex appeal of its lines and curves, size and muscle was indisputable. Its machine was bold, distinctive and aggressive. As was the man sitting next to her.

It was miraculous how a tiny briefcase could make her feel so free again. Totally uninhibited to do anything she liked. She finally had a safety net. Even if Eric went and burned the whole thing to ashes, she still knew who to contact.

While Eric kept his eyes on the road passing one car after another, Lina was thinking how many times she could very carefully and secretively peek and stare at him before he noticed. She tried the reflection of the windshield. The glass of the dashboard. The rearview mirror. She tilted her head down, while eyeing his body. He had such long legs. Long thick arms. Big hands. Yep, those were long fingers. Long fingers, long… Yeah, not going there missy. It was a challenge enough not to jump and straddle the man, when the whole car smelled of him. It was a masculine spicy scent that she couldn't describe. Ocean air, leather, earth, copper. A forest after a downpour. She'd never smelled anything like it.

To buy herself some time and peace of mind, Lina was using the same proven tactic with him as she had with Sookie. Iggy Pop was singing his heart out and she hummed along, not quite feeling brave enough to start singing the words of _The Passenger_ out loud in his presence. Eric's expression kept changing from an amused look to a suspicious one and back again. They didn't speak to each other. Both were wrapped up in their own thoughts and scared to break the silence if it meant a fight. She had reached her personal limit with all the bickering. That's why she pursed her lips displeased, when he turned the volume down.

"Did you have a good day?" he asked her.

His voice rose a little at the end of the question. It made her think if those innocent words were hiding a double meaning she couldn't grasp. Eric wasn't exactly the guy to attempt small talk, when silence was too much to handle.

"Yes. I was dead till sunset. Why?"

"Nothing unusual happened?" He turned to face her, his blue eyes gleaming with anticipation.

Lina raised an eyebrow. "No, I don't think so. At least Sookie didn't say anything and I felt nothing odd."

"You felt nothing… inexplicable? Overpowering?" he panned gazing at her intently.

_Holy hell in a handbasket_. He was talking about her waking up – the dream. Testing if his prediction hit right. Lina's eyes widened and her mouth pressed into a tight line. Thank all goddesses, she couldn't blush or her face would've been rivaling the red lights they were about to stop for.

"No," she said, but her voice was throaty. She wanted to slap herself.

He got the answer he was looking for and seemed awfully pleased with himself. And here she thought that dream had already embarrassed her enough. It was one thing to be dreaming of him, but it was another to know that he had the same lust themed dreams as well.

"Yes Eric, I dreamed of you fucking me and it was very pleasant. I came all over my thighs. Can you tell me about the witches now that my daytime erotica has been dealt with?"

He was grinning like a Cheshire cat. "I'm not done picturing it."

And Lina was not impressed.

They took a few more turns and stopped in front of a small shop with windows filled with small trinkets, large dusty looking books, statues of Egyptian cats and paintings of bleary-eyed women. Curtains of violet and black hid anything else from view. Moon Goddess Emporium. A very charming establishment, no doubt. A flock of crows was sitting on the roof of the building and croaking at people passing by. It couldn't get any more clichéd.

"How many witches?" Lina asked completely focused on the task at hand.

"We're about to find out." Eric murmured and got out of the car.

They walked to the front door of the shop about to go in, until they saw a familiar looking girl sweet-talking on the phone. _Tara_. It was weird hearing her coo to somebody lovingly, when all Lina had heard coming out of her mouth was venom. Eric clearly decided to ignore the girl entirely, but Lina fisted the back of his jacket in an iron grip.

"Would you mind glamouring her and asking a few questions?" she whispered.

Eric turned to her. "You don't want to do it yourself?"

"I can't."

"Why?"

At moments like this she hated being possibly the only handicapped vampire in the world.

"I don't know how," she admitted shyly.

"Really? You never learned?" His eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Do I even want to know what kind of wiles you have been using to feed before the Great Revelation?"

"Probably not."

Tara ended the call. With a shy smile on her lips she put the phone back in her jeans pocket and finally noticed that she had company. The two vampires saw panic cross her face before it turned into a nasty grimace.

"You. Oh, I should've known you two were banging," she groaned looking directly at Lina. "What are you doing here?"

"Hello Sookie's human friend," Eric said catching her eyes in glamour. "How many witches are inside the shop?"

Tara stared at him eyes blank and mouth hanging open as if he was the most fascinating creature in the world. Lina coveted that skill like nothing else in the world. It made even this Tara girl tolerable. "Marnie. I guess the others are just wiccans or fans or something?"

"How many people?" his low voice asked.

"About fifteen?" she answered dreamily, her eyes heavy lidded.

"Why are you outside?"

"I freaked out. That Marnie started gushing about bringing dead people alive. I'm just visiting and definitely not getting myself mixed with any zombie bullshit."

"Have you seen them do this magic?"

"They were backslapping each other for bringing a pet bird alive, but I never saw it."

"Thank you, now be on your way home." Eric ended the glamour.

They watched as Tara woke up suddenly and sprinted away without uttering another word. Eric took hold of Lina's hand and pulled her near. She felt his cool breath tickling her cheek.

"We'll take the witch down and make it as clean as possible. We should encourage the others to leave before that. Fifteen is a bit much. AVL won't like it."

"Yes. The nercomancer must go, but we could wait until everybody else leaves?" She was pretty sure there were more Sookie's friends involved than just Tara. And less Sookie came to know about this, the better.

"If they're talking about bringing a body alive tonight, we've got to go in now. We don't know if the spell could reach us," he said and turned to take the handle of the door.

"Eric, don't. I'm sure there's a window somewhere and we could have a look before barging in. And if Tara was here, there could be more Sookie's friends inside. I promised her I wouldn't hurt anybody and that promise I have to keep," she said sternly.

"Sookie's wishes do not matter. And if her friends are that idiotic, they can only blame themselves for what's coming for them."

"Eric, please." _Pleading again, Lina. Great show of strength_, she thought. "Let's do this my way. Just this once."

Eric searched her eyes for something and she couldn't tell if he found it or not. Fortunately he nodded."Very well. After you, Miss Collett."

Around the corner there was a narrow back alley swallowed in the dark, obscured by shadows. Mostly there were trashcans and litter thrown on the ground like it didn't matter there if the whole city filled with garbage. The smell of putrid fish and leftovers was repulsive. Even more birds were flocked on this side of the building croaking furiously at them as they walked down the alley searching for a window, through which they could possibly peek inside. They disturbed the birds' meal time. Lina walked first and Eric followed. Indeed, she saw a window at the back that could show inside the shop. There was a door next to it that could lead into a storage.

She turned her head to tell Eric the news just in time to see probably the silliest sight she could think of. Something landed on Eric's shoulder. A stain of white and black goo. From a bird.

He looked horrified trying to find the offender so that he could go kill it. Lina bit her lip. She turned away so he couldn't see the wide smile forming on her face. She tried not to make a sound.

"You're laughing at me?" Eric asked incredulously.

"No," she managed to give out. She leaned her hand on the wall and tried to keep her shoulders from shaking. She fought to suppress a laugh, sputtering like an old water faucet. A bird just took a crap on Eric Northman's shoulder. It was the funniest thing she had ever seen.

"Lina, are you laughing at me?" he asked again and walked in front of her pointing at his shoulder. The corners of his lips curved involuntarily. "You think this is funny?"

Then she doubled over with laughter. Eric watched her try to cover it by putting a hand over her mouth, but her smile lit up the dark alley like the sun itself. It was the first time he had seen her smile for him happily and laugh with abandon. He decided that he liked it even if the joke was on him.

"I'm sorry that I'm not sorry," she giggled like a child.

Suddenly she shrieked when Eric grabbed her in his arms and dropped her on a pile of trash. She fell ass first onto something squishy. Her face contorted in disgust and she tried to squirm away from the pile without touching anything. The smell was so so bad. She didn't want to know what she had been sitting on.

"What the fuck, Eric? Are you twelve?" she shouted.

He was only grinning at her like a maniac his blue eyes playful.

Muttering she tried to swipe the most litter off her jeans and stomped to the window away from the immature Viking. _Voilà! _A perfect view straight to the main room of the shop, where people were fighting over something. Eric appeared right behind her.

"Aah, Lafayette. I didn't know he was a witch."

Lina turned and smiled broadly. "Oh, I'm sorry mister. Could you find some other window? You smell of bird poo."

"And you, my dear, smell of rotten cat food," he winked. "Actually it's quite nice for a change. Your own scent is slowly driving me to the brink of insanity."

He put his hands on her waist. "It's this beautiful face that I now see on every girl. And it's your majestic body that I pretended to be fucking, when I bent my dancers over my office desk. Sometimes I forgot they still needed oxygen."

"There is a concept of too much information."

"And you know, sometimes when I took them from behind," he whispered and squeezed her ass. Lina swatted his hands away. "I held your lovely cashmere cardigan over my face. I have never come so hard."

"Eric, shut up. This is neither the time nor the place." She wondered if there ever had been a time she wanted to go deaf as badly as now. She heard him chuckling. Well, she was glad she could amuse him so much.

But then all laughter died. Inside the Moon Goddess Emporium, an old lady had gone to retrieve something. When they saw what it was, both vampires stiffened.

"The witch has crossed a line," Eric said his tone once more deadly serious.

* * *

Only moments before, the witch and her wiccans were sitting in a circle surrounded by dozens of candles. There was a heated debate going on about their next endeavor. Some were behind it, others weren't. A fat, balding man sitting right next to Marnie shouted, "What do you think we should do then, pussies?! This is great magic, it will make us powerful as fuck. I could be able to bring my ex-girlfriend back alive like you could your own loved ones. Let's do this thing!"

There were a few enthusiastic nods and murmurs of agreement, but Jesus Velasquez stood up.

"Excuse me, but what the fuck are you talking about? Bringing your chick alive from the dead even if she has already found peace in her afterlife? That's crazy talk, my friend."

"Where y'all going to find a dead body?" Lafayette finally asked the burning question of the hour.

Marnie raised her hands asking everybody to calm down. She brushed her hand through her tangled hair and sighed dramatically.

"I've been hearing whispers. Whispers of elder spirits, who encourage us to continue. We'll find something great in this power. It will help us. The spirits will help us! We are raising a person from death tonight and this person is already here. My neighbor's daughter passed away a couple of days ago. She died of overdose. Such a sweet girl."

As everybody else around her watched Marnie with their mouths hanging open, she stood up and disappeared in the back room.

"Do you need me Marnie?" the fat guy shouted and ran after her to offer a helping hand.

"Yo, Jesus, we gotta go. This is where we end this wiccan thing," Lafayette shook Jesus's shoulder. "Right the fuck now."

"Wait," his boyfriend whispered.

They all heard a few grunts before Marnie and her henchman came back. They were carrying a body of a 19-year-old-girl. Marnie held her hands as the fat guy had her legs. The girl's blue face was lolled to the side, her dead empty eyes staring into nothingness.

"Holy shit, I'm out of here. This thing ain't alright ladies and gentlemen." Lafayette sprang to his feet and left the building running. Jesus watched the scene with horror, before hurrying after him. He took a few scared looking girls with him.

Marnie laid the body inside the circle and closed the girl's eyes softly pushing her eyelids down. A few brave wiccans still sat beside her chair, eager to see what was going to happen. They watched in silence as the girl lay there in the middle looking like she was only asleep if it wasn't for the bloated blue face. Marnie sat down and took hold of her wiccans hands. She took a deep breath and began to chant. After the initial shock of this macabre sight, others began to wake up from their stupor and sang along.

A shatter of a broken glass stopped them from sinking into total hypnosis. They all watched as one empty bottle after another slowly moved on the window pane as if pushed by an invisible force and dropped on the floor breaking into thousands of pieces.

"What's happening?! Is it the spirits?" a girl screamed.

Marnie's head flicked from side to side. She wasn't the one doing this.

Right beside the shrieking girl candles started turning over spilling the hot wax on the floor almost setting her jumper on fire. A small coffee table rose in the air spinning before it flew over their heads and crashed into a wall. The wiccans decided they had seen enough. Ducking their heads in fear of more flying objects they stumbled out of the door leaving Marnie and her henchman alone in the middle of this strange magic. Marnie looked awed, but disappointed.

"We can still try, Marnie? To wake her up?" the fat guy asked and nodded towards the corpse. But Marnie didn't have time to answer.

Both front doors flew open with blinding speed. The witch and the henchman jumped in fright as the doors collided with the walls with a loud bang. A tall man stepped in. Eyeing the two humans with a slight smile, he gave them almost a merry sounding greeting.

"Good evening. I'm looking for the leader of this coven… Marnie I presume?"

Eric walked in with his steps echoing ominously against the wooden floor of the silent room. The light of the candles danced in the wind, until he stepped on one cutting all its oxygen. He never took his eyes off the witch.

"Who told you my name?" Marnie grunted and straightened her back to show some courage. Her lower lip was twitching.

"Let's just say that… a little bird did," he said giving her a toothy grin. He walked around the room stopping in front of the poor girl's body. "Oh Marnie Marnie Marnie, what do you have here? Have you been a bad girl? That is a dead body. You don't play with the dead. In any way." Eric slowly nudged the corpse with his foot. The body got the whole room reeking of death and decay.

The henchman was slightly wobbling. He was backing up towards the back door not noticing someone right behind him.

"Where are you going, sweetheart?" asked a voice making the man jolt forward. He turned around and saw two piercing eyes stare at him. Lina was leaning against the doorframe with her arms crossed.

The man's hands were shaking, when he reached behind his back drawing a handgun from under his belt. He pointed it towards Lina, his aim jumping and wavering as he held the gun in his unstable hands. He bit his tongue between his teeth.

"Don't move little lady. I've got you now. I'll shoot your brains out."

"I'll have that, thank you." She outstretched her hand and the gun flew to it. The man's eyes widened and he shrieked in surprise.

"Freak… you freak!"

"I guess I am. Little man, it's your chance to go now. Run and I won't hurt you. Run now." Lina said and took a few steps forward looming over him as he cowered. She snapped her fangs down.

But instead of running, the man reached for his belt once more this time unbuckling it. He pulled it off his jeans loops and grinned victoriously his eyes flashing with craziness.

"It's silver bitch," he shouted and jumped.

Lina did nothing to stop him from shoving the silvery belt buckle to her chest. The man expected her skin to burn, sizzle and ashen, but nothing happened. He shoved it once more and tried to rub it in, yelping in fear, when he felt her tiny hands on his neck.

"You should've run." She bit down into his artery. His blood rushing to her mouth, he howled in pain.

Marnie tried to use that moment to shove at Eric and reach for a knife on the table, but her balance failed her. Eric didn't budge as her hands touched his chest. She fell on the floor rolling on her side cutting her hand in the process in the broken glass. Blood spilled from her wrist and streaked the floor. Eric leaned over her and bared his fangs.

"Any last words?"

"Vampire, I'll curse you!" she screamed.

"Not very original," he whispered and lifted his eyes to his mate. She was watching him intently, while feeding. The man kicked the air before he slumped and surrendered to her. Eric sank his fangs into the witch's neck.

The henchman's blood was laced with anger, hate and great fear of death. The high dose of pure adrenaline coursed through Lina feeding the feeling of euphoria and sharpening her senses. The sweet metallic taste coated her mouth. Her lips were smeared and red droplets ran across her chin to her neck. Finally dislodging from his neck, she licked her fangs lazily like the predator she was. Breathing heavily she threw her head back trying to get a hold of herself before her bloodlust overcame her. She felt like ripped in two. Her whole body was poised for battle, for sating one hunger after another. In this state she needed violence, blood and heat.

Another part of her willed her to stay calm, stay put. This feeling would pass like it always did, a voice inside her whispered.

Lina didn't know when it all started. Perhaps it was the very day she woke up in her new life. But this thing – dark and malicious thing – was growing, muffling her and making her a slave in her own body. It had grown into her and came out rejoicing, when she spilled blood or fed from a human consumed with fear. Fear of _her_. It colored her eyes dark and made her ravenous. The light and darkness were blurred around the edges at moments like this. It took a while to calm down and regain her sanity.

Her slack hands dropped the man's dead body on the floor with an unceremonious thump.

"Aislinn," Eric called her.

She knew how she must look. With her wide pupils hiding the blue and grey of her irises and coloring her eyes black as coal, she was a haunting sight to behold. Her vision was unfocused. She could only see things right in front of her like the small fibers of dust swirling in the air. Around her, everything else melted into blur.

She felt Eric move, kicking the man's corpse to a corner and coming to stand right in front of her. She hoped he would understand to leave her alone. She was going to be fine in a few more seconds. No such luck. His hand took a strong hold of her face and he studied her eyes.

Then she only saw him. His cobalt eyes and long lashes. Strong jaw and wicked grin. He was beautiful.

She licked her lips invitingly. She wanted to taste all of him.

For a moment she was airborne. Everything was happening so fast that her mind couldn't follow. With force that would've cracked a human's spine he threw her on the floor, falling with her to the ground. She felt his weight on her and heard herself sigh in his ear encouraging him to move closer. She wound her arms around his back sinking her nails deep in his skin. She wanted to keep him there.

He forced her legs apart, taking hold behind her right knee and spreading her thighs wide. Positioning himself between her thighs he drew a ragged breath, when he ground his erection against her denim-covered core. He didn't give her a chance to gasp in pleasure, as he stole her lips to a ferocious kiss. A small whimper escaped her as he increased the pressure. His mouth was demanding when it moved with hers, his tongue probing her lower lip and tasting the remnants of the henchman's blood. When his lips parted hers, she felt an intense desire sweep through her, fanning the flames into an unstoppable raging fire. He plunged his tongue inside greedily stroking hers, expertly avoiding the fangs.

Lina felt his free hand grip her neck and wound in her hair. He moved his hips rhythmically against hers.

Pulling away his mouth he whispered, "Will you give yourself to me, Aislinn?"

His other hand slowly slid from her thigh to her lower back. He pressed her hips even closer making her pleasure skyrocket. She babbled a weak sound of longing and hoped it would be an answer enough.

He kissed her again even more urgently, his tongue driving into her mouth, his hand tightening around her. He moved it from her lower back to her hip and finally drew it to the apex of her thighs. His two fingers brushed and pressured her nub through the jeans. She threw her head back and cried out loud. Her body tensed, as the fingers lazily circled her core and pressed hard.

"Will you give me what I want?"

She wanted to nod, wanted to rip his jeans and hers and urge him inside her. But she woke up from her haze, when she felt him kissing her throat. She recognized that kiss. It was a kiss before a bite.

It was a knee jerk reaction she had learned long before meeting him. She felt him licking and sucking her neck coaxing the vein to the surface. His fangs hovered near the skin. After one final peck on her throat he brought the fangs down piercing her. But he didn't get the chance to taste her. An invisible force pulled him off of her, threw him a good ten meters away and smacked his head against the wall. He fell in a heap on the floor.

He shook his head not yet understanding what had happened. Why was he on the floor? Lina was panting and lying on her side. She was slowly coming back to herself, finding balance between her desires. Eric took one look at her and leaped on his feet.

"What the fuck was that?" he roared.

Lina lifted herself from the floor with some effort. Blood was still rushing in her ears, energy coursing through her. Her core throbbed in longing of his touch.

"Don't ever use your power against me again Aislinn, or you will learn the hard way," Eric snarled and invaded her personal space. "You need to trust me."

She shook her head and took a few steps back. "And you need to stay the fuck away from my neck Eric. I thought we discussed this. We don't know how my blood could affect you." She wished he would just shut up and leave her alone. Or at least touch her like he did before. Anything was better than him roaring at her.

"I already told you, I don't believe it will affect me the same way it would affect others. We should try it before I claim you."

"Believe what you want, but you're not having my blood," she said with finality crossing her arms.

"I will, very soon."

She narrowed her eyes.

"And what if you kill me Eric? You could drain me to death."

"That's why we need to start now. Take it slow. I'm not forcing you to have mine, but I need to taste yours."

Lina closed her eyes. There was no negotiating with him like this. "I'm tired of fighting with you."

She looked around the room. It was a plain and simple wreck. Three bodies lay scattered across the room and the floor was speckled with blood. Splinters of broken glass got stuck on the heel of her shoe as she walked to a wall and ripped a black curtain down, in which she planned to wrap at least one of the bodies. Might as well start cleaning the mess they made.

"Don't bother. I'm calling the cleaning crew, and then we leave," Eric said and dug out his phone.

Lina just nodded and went outside to get some fresh air. She would need it, if she was going to ride back to Sookie's in a closed space with that insufferable man.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry, if I'm teasing you and not letting Eric and Lina have their fun. But them having their momentous first time on the floor of MGE with dead Marnie's blank eyes staring at them would've been too weird even for my tastes. And pheew, writing scenes with even small lemons (limes? :D) is a slow process.**

**I know their relationship is building very slowly, but bear with me. It'll be worth it, I hope.**

**Ps. The Smashing Pumpkins are coming to Helsinki in August. Their song "Ava Adore" inspired me to write this story (listen to it!), so I feel that I must be there rocking in the front row. Woop woop.****  
**


	13. Chapter 13

**CHAPTER 13**

Eric pulled in at the Stackhouse family home thirty minutes later and watched Lina relax against her seat for the first time during the drive back. They had been trapped in an electric charged hush that didn't end when the hum of the engine quieted.

She just sat there. Her head rested against the car window as she had watched the scenery fly by. She didn't insist on listening to music and never looked at him again. He didn't know where her thoughts where and how he could reach her again. He could only watch her untie her braid and hide her lovely face behind a curtain of blond wavy hair.

Perhaps exploding at her like that after their first moment of intimacy was a greater mistake than he first thought, but getting to finally touch her and taste her made him overcome with hunger. She had denied him and the thought of her ever refusing him made him irate.

He knew he put her on edge. Everything else before this night he had done on purpose. He knew her on paper, but he wanted to know her himself. He wanted to get a reaction out of her and study how she thought under pressure. How she acted when feeling threatened and what she was willing to do. He had learned that she wasn't the woman he had first thought she was.

Lina hadn't escaped and it pleased him. Not because it would've been waste of time running after her from a continent to another, but because it revealed a lot about her character. She didn't stay because she was too afraid to run or felt desperate. She had strong sense of duty. She didn't go back against her word and she didn't leave her cousin in danger. She was loyal.

Lina hadn't called for help, which he thought would be the first thing she did when she got out his office that night in Fangtasia. He had assumed that she was under Niall's protection and that Niall was the reason the fairy princess was still alive after 200 or so years. He had been expecting a visit from him – threats and deals for her life. He had been prepared to face numerous attempts on his life, but none of those happened. He walked the streets without a shadow and spent his days in peace and quiet. It was he who had told Niall the news. It was Eric, who had provoked him to come for her aid at last. She had stayed silent.

He quickly learned that Lina worked alone. Undoubtedly she trusted her own skills to keep from danger. Even with so much of her life still tied up to her former kin, she was more independent than he had thought.

Now sitting in his car, she wasn't silent because she was sad or afraid. She was frustrated to the point of pulling her pretty hair out. Her body was betraying her will. Her subconscious played games with her dreams just like his did. It was good that she hadn't been lying next to him at waking up this evening, or he would've taken her right then and there. Taken her brutally.

Lina got out of the car without a word of goodbye. He followed her out. The house was quiet with all the lights turned out. No one would be there to welcome her.

"I apologize for yelling at you earlier," he said trying to fix what he had broken. He thought he had made some progress with her. He didn't want to tarnish it altogether.

His apology took her by surprise. Lina stopped dead in her tracks and turned to look at him like she couldn't believe what she had heard. Her eyebrows rose in disbelief when she saw that he was serious. But then the old frown was back on, and she left him standing alone by the Corvette. Over her shoulder she called out, "You're forgiven. Goodnight Eric."

He couldn't let her go like this. "Aislinn."

She put her hand on the handrail of the porch. Her posture was tense, shoulders slightly lifted. She clearly wanted the night to end already.

"Yes Eric?"

"Walk with me."

She turned, but didn't look at him. Her gaze travelled to and fro the yard in a vain search of some distraction. Sookie was nowhere in sight. Eric's blood could tell she was close being somewhat happy. A little distraught, but safe. Judging by the emotional jumble, she had to be across the cemetery at the Compton home.

"I don't think it's a good idea. I should wait for Sookie to come home. After all, I'm here for her, not for you," her cold voice reminded him.

"Sookie is at Compton's safe and sound. Walk with me only for a while."

She didn't nod or speak. She didn't turn away either. Only tilted her head, considering him.

"And if I say no? If I ask you to leave?"

"I will. I only want to talk to you."

"Alright then. Let's walk."

Lina looked down at her blood-covered pumps and grimaced. She unzipped her brown leather jacket and threw it on the porch along with her ruined heels. With bare feet she took slow steps towards him her hips swaying. Her steps were light and hardly made any sound against the gravel driveway. Gravity had no hold of her. A thought of how she must have hated him for knowing how to fly as well crossed his mind.

He courteously offered her his hand, although he didn't expect her to take it. And she didn't.

Walking past him she only said, "I appreciate your apology if it was sincere."

"It was."

The two vampires walked to the cemetery near. The moon shone brightly in the autumn sky casting a dark glow on the ground. Lina dirtied her feet in the mud, mold and sand wandering around aimlessly, perhaps looking for a certain gravestone. She ran her hand on each memorial studying the epitaphs. Eric followed her, carefully avoiding stepping on her tiny footprints. She was very short, he thought. Without her heels she must only reach his chest.

Finally she stopped in front of a fresh looking grave.

_Adele Stackhouse_.

"Sookie's grandmother?" Eric asked.

"Yes. I think I would've liked to know her. Sookie speaks highly of her."

Lina leaned against the gravestone next to Adele's and buried her feet into the soft soil. She was waiting for him to start speaking.

Eric leaned down and looked in her blue grey eyes that reminded him of liquid silver. There was no evidence left of the demonic blackness that had taken over only an hour ago. She stared back at him, her gaze unwavering. He liked how she had never really feared him. His thumb brushed her cheek.

"Tell me about what happened before. You got lost for a moment. Something strange in you surfaced."

Lina brushed it off. "It was my bloodlust. It comes and goes. Usually it takes me a few moments to calm down after a fight. That's all."

"That was not only bloodlust, Lina." He knew what bloodlust was. He felt it himself, although his many years of existence had dulled it considerably. What happened to her was something more sinister.

"It's not the same bloodlust you feel or so I've been told. It's something more intense. Darker. But I can control it, no need to fret."

His eyes narrowed a little from her flippant tone. She was hiding something again and he had no doubt it was something important. The woman was like an endless puzzle. Every time he learned something new, he only managed to reveal another coil of secrets to unravel.

"Why do you think it is?"

"Well, mostly I think it's because I was not meant for this life. Despite what you might think, I don't belong here with you." She smiled to him ruefully. For one quick moment he saw a glimpse of the warmth return her eyes. "It's not only my scent or blood that makes me different. It's not my skill or my inability to glamour. It's not my body or freaky ears. It's what's happening inside of me."

"Can it harm you?" he asked.

"I don't know," she whispered deep in thought. "Guess we are only going to find out someday."

_We_. He didn't know if she actually meant it.

"I need you to tell me if it gets worse."

Lina nodded to him, while secretly cursing how naturally he seemed to have assumed his position as some kind of a guardian over her wellbeing. She was frustrated. She was incensed. She felt like kicking something. Or someone. Maybe him. She knew she should calm down. He was behaving at the moment and maybe feeling a bit remorseful. He meant well, she guessed.

Her wandering gaze fell upon a solitary object lying in the ground near the graves. A shovel. That sight made her smile a little. She thought of Sookie running around with it bashing the skulls of serial killers.

Eric followed her gaze and picked the shovel up from the ground. She felt a need to explain.

"Sookie told me she killed someone here with a shovel. The woman sure surprises me sometimes."

Eric seemed to be searching it for blood marks. "I was more surprised to hear our King crawled in the sun to save her."

"Oh, chivalry is not dead."

"He believes he's in love."

He sounded condescending, as if Bill claiming to love Lina's cousin was somehow shameful. Lina didn't know if it was because he himself desired Sookie and considered Bill as a rival or if he thought less of Bill for loving someone in general. She looked at him confused.

"And you say he isn't?"

Then she saw the shovel he was holding in better light. Iron. Pure iron. Standing right next to her Eric weighed it in his hands turning it over and over. Before she realized she was sitting too close, the handle almost touched her skin. She yelped, quickly got up and zoomed farther away.

"Please throw it away."

Eric looked from her to the shovel. "Iron?"

"Yes."

"It hurts you more than silver?"

"Yes."

He immediately reared back and threw it high towards the shadowy clouds. It landed somewhere with a small clank. She let out the breath she was holding. Iron affected her worse than silver did vampires. It burned and immobilized her. Vampires can't die of silver, but she was sure she could die of iron.

Wiping his hands on his jeans Eric answered her earlier question about Bill. It was even worse than she had thought.

"Vampires live for survival, our hunger and pleasure. We live to learn. We adapt to a changing world, while we ourselves remain untouched by time. We don't feel for humans like young Bill Compton does. You know this."

"I'm not sure if I do, Eric."

"Love is a human emotion and not more than an illusion. Vampires master their emotions. We do not love." He was scrutinizing her, speaking to her like he was teaching a younger vampire a lesson in life. His tone was devoid of any hint of humanity. This belief seemed to run deep in him.

"You have never loved?" she carefully asked.

"It's useless."

_Useless_.

Lina got up from the gravestone she was sitting on. Moving slowly but deliberately, she approached him. She was about to take a great risk. "You want to spend the eternity with me by your side?"

The question took him off guard, but he controlled himself. This was a woman he couldn't afford to show any weakness to. Crossing his arms he answered her simply, "Yes."

"What if I told you one day I loved you?"

Lina watched his face turn into stone, wiped clean of every expression or emotion. He rose up to his full height staring her down.

She knew she treaded on dangerous waters.

"Would you tell me I'm useless, Eric?"

She stared back at him mercilessly not allowing him any room to breathe.

"You don't love me." His voice was like ice.

"Of course I don't," she stated like it was as clear as the midnight sky. Eric's jaw clenched. He looked like he wanted to yank her by the hair for speaking to him like that. She stopped right in front of him refusing to back down under his cold stare. She continued, "But I have loved and I'm even less human than you are. And I will fall in love many times hereafter. I think we're all here for one hell of a ride. You might as well live it fully. Otherwise there's no point in eternity."

"Emotions are dangerous."

She shook her head. "Having emotions is important. How can you say you're still part of this world if you don't feel anything?"

He didn't answer her. She walked back to the gravestone and smiled grimly.

"I gave up feeling once. I turned off all of my emotions. Answer me Eric, how do you think I know the sun doesn't kill me?" she asked her tone neutral like they were talking about weather.

She only smiled thinking how she had really gone a long way to be here. Talking about love with a man more obstinate about avoiding it than her. The man she was supposed to live happily ever after. It was all very bittersweet.

Then something changed in him. He seemed to change tactics once again like he had found an out from the conversation that vexed him. She hated how everything with him felt like power play. Like they were playing some sick game of chess. He shifted his weight from left to right and lowered his chin so he could look straight in her eyes.

"Emotions are what keep you from moving forward, Lina."

"What do you mean?"

"Your family is leaving you. But it's you, who should have left them long ago."

Lina grew rigid. She didn't speak, only biting her tongue in a nervous reaction. This was a sensitive topic for her.

When he noticed he had struck a nerve, he answered her earlier smile. He didn't want to hurt her. He wanted her to see his way.

Eric came close to her again. He took her hand in his and brushed her fingers trying to soothe her. "You've had a unique opportunity to stay connected to your family after turning, but it is doing you more harm than good."

"I don't know if that's true. And neither do you," she whispered.

"Come."

He pulled her with him and they were moving again. Moving through a thick forest. Carefully dodging the low branches of trees and stepping over the roots, they walked which seemed like forever. Eric didn't let go of her hand.

They arrived at a waterfront of a large lake. There was no wharf or beach. Only rocks and a small grassy bank. The moon shone brightly and cast its image on the still water. There was no wind to break it. This place was breathtaking in its beauty. Only now Lina understood how so many supernaturals had found their way here to Bon Temps. The place was filled with magic. It was like its second nature.

Still holding her hand in his, Eric quietly asked her, "If I let you go now, what would you do? If I gave you my word not to interfere with your life, how would you continue living?"

She kept her eyes on the beautiful landscape. The honest answer was she didn't know. Would she go back to France, when she knew Frans and Claude weren't there anymore to keep her company? She had her dancers. She would probably move them to Germany closer to Isibil. Or would she want to stay here with her only living relative? All she knew was that she didn't want to be alone.

"I'm not sure. So many options," she said and smiled at him playfully, although it didn't reach her eyes. He probably saw that. He rarely missed anything.

Then he did something she hadn't prepared for.

He started undressing in front of her. He pushed his leather jacket off his shoulders and lifted his t-shirt over his head.

Lina's eyes widened. The sight made her feel weak in the knees and got her reckless body singing. She brazenly took in his muscular back, broad shoulders and narrower waist. He had the body build of a warrior; strong arms after years of carrying a heavy sword, lean muscles to give endurance in battle and light scars adorning his skin where his opponent had gotten too close. Though against the night, his pale skin looked flawless.

Lina didn't know if she should cover her eyes, flee or was it ok to stare at him? Would he mind her caressing his body with her hungry gaze?

His hands went to his belt. Lina almost jumped to stop him. Almost.

"What are you doing?" she hissed in panic.

He showed her his favorite crooked grin. "Going for a swim. Join me."

He dropped his pants. He obviously didn't believe in underwear.

_Sweet Jesus_. Lina's hands flew over her eyes and she slowly shook her head from side to side. Why was she in this situation? He had the most perfect butt she had ever seen. Why was he doing this to her? It was almost painful to fight against running her hands all over him.

"What are _you_ doing, Lina?" she heard him ask her. Now his voice came from farther away. Peeking from between her fingers she saw that he was already standing in the water his delicious backside hidden beneath the surface. She felt like a fool standing there all shy like a little girl. "Come to me."

She was indecisive. She didn't know if she felt comfortable enough to get in the water with him naked as the day she was born, which was utterly ridiculous. She was a vampire for crying out loud. She didn't feel shame. She especially didn't feel shame over her body. What was going on with her?

"I won't touch you, if you don't want it. Consider it the first attempt to gain your trust, " he said and dived under water disappearing from view.

_Fuck it all to hell_. He was one annoying little bastard for making her do this shit. And feel this shit.

She gingerly took off her shirt revealing her plain white bra. She took off her jeans and stood there peering down at her feet like a scared teenager. She wiggled her toes in the long soft grass pondering the pros and cons of leaving her underwear on. She still didn't see him anywhere. Of course that didn't mean he couldn't see her.

Shaking her head furiously, she decided to woman up and took off the rest.

She almost ran into the water.

It was warm, like bath water. She walked as far as she could feeling it rising to her chin. The bottom of the lake was covered with knife sharp stones that could've pierced a softer skin. She watched Eric surface a few meters away throwing his hair back spraying water around him. Then she closed her eyes and pulled her head underneath.

Her wild hair swayed in front of her eyes. Floating under the water only surrounded by seaweed felt nice. Eric was right. This was a good idea.

When she came up again she felt him standing next to her.

"Brave girl."

Eric had to remind himself he had promised not to touch her, but she was making it difficult. Her scent was as tantalizing as ever. Brushing her now wet hair back she revealed her graceful neck and the tops of her breasts. They were round and full. They would fit his hands perfectly. In the moonlight she looked otherworldly. And she was his. It made him smile. He turned his head away so she couldn't accuse him of abusing her trust. Small steps, he said to himself.

He couldn't believe all that he was willing to do for having this woman.

"What happens after you've claimed me?" she asked watching him curiously.

"Are you ready to talk about it?"

"Just entertaining the thought, that's all."

He decided that she deserved to know at least some of the whole truth. "I want you to come live with me."

Lina nodded. She had thought as much. She couldn't argue that as long as he wasn't going to lock her up and keep her in his home for the rest of her existence. But that was of course if she ever allowed him that close. She was thinking hypothetically here.

"I'm going to leave Fangtasia to Pam for a while, only taking care of my duties as a sheriff," he said running the tips of his fingers in the water making small circles move across the surface.

"What about me?"

"You'll have enough on your hands, when you finally carry my scent. It's going to take some adjustment."

_Ok, that was ok_, she guessed.

"I want you away from the public eye for a while," he continued glancing in her direction once or twice to monitor her facial expressions. He saw suspicion there.

"For a while?"

"A few years."

He planned for more than that, but revealing it now would be too much for her to handle in her current state of mind. He wanted to make sure every last one of her vampire followers ceased their search and gave up before he could even think about bringing her out in public as his mate. He'll get rid of them one by one.

"What about my life in France?" she demanded.

Carefully thinking how to phrase this, he answered her, "What life have you really got there after your cousins leave?"

She brought her hands through her hair, combing it furiously. Judging by her growing agitation he wondered if she was starting to regret ever bringing this up, although it pleased him that she was ready to give it a thought. It would become her life only in a few weeks at most. She should think about what it meant for her.

"My dance group. Eric, you should know how important it is to me."

"I do. We'll move your work here. With the reputation you have in Europe, the American show business will welcome you with open arms. But you're not going on tours for a while. I'm sure you'll understand why," he said. Now that he had gotten a glimpse of her body, he wanted to keep her as near as possible for a long time to come. "It's safer for you here. As much as I don't like it, Compton being the King has its advantages. He's weak with no ambition. We'll have to make sure there's no real threat to his throne and he'll give us the few years of peace, we'll need."

"I'll lose all my investors. A couple of years is too much," she insisted crossing her arms across her chest.

"I've looked into your books. Fortunately the most of your investors in Europe are investing in your talent and your work as Mirage's creative director. Their funding will follow you here. But then there are others with less than solid grounds for investing. There are wealthy humans and vampires with an infatuation."

"You've really done your homework haven't you," she muttered mostly to herself.

"You were bound to lose them anyway, when they hear you're mated. I'll take their place and become one of your main investors."

He thought she was handling this surprisingly well. No bursts of anger or desperate pleads yet like the day before. She actually was slowly becoming accustomed to the idea. But then she snapped.

"You plan to make our mating bond public knowledge?" she half snarled.

"Not necessarily. If someone tries to get too close to you I will make my claim known. But sooner or later the word will spread that I have a mate."

"Eric, I'm a very private person for good reasons. Not only because it allows a bunch of perverts keep their daydreams and spray me with money, but because the less the crazy ones know about my life the better," she said fuming.

He wanted to engulf her tiny body in his arms and keep her there until she let go of her irrational anger once more. "I know. We'll keep our lives a secret as much as we possibly can. You can be sure that I have very little patience for those who want to harm or touch something that is mine."

He watched her pout. Her slightly bronzed wet skin glistened in the dark light. He allowed himself to look at her this time. Her body was lithe but curvaceous. Like Sookie's but even more to the extreme with her narrow waist and soft looking hips. Her breasts were beautiful. He was glad she couldn't see how her nakedness affected him, although he was going to show her really soon.

"You will have total control of me," her unsure voice whispered. He could guess it was the fact she hated the most. He would be able to command her to some extent. He didn't know if it was as much as he could command Pam, but it was true nonetheless.

"Yes."

"Will you command me?"

"If you're doing something that could be potentially harmful to us, then yes."

"But you'll set the rules for what is harmful and what is not," she stated more than asked.

"I won't do it for sport, Aislinn. You can talk to Pam about it, although our relationship will be very different."

Lina hesitated. She felt conflicted. The words Sookie had said about him didn't match the man she saw in front of her now, but he was still very highhanded and very demanding. She could see how their life could be. Only a little of course, but it didn't sound so impossible as it had before. She loathed the fact that he would bind her, but she could always escape him. Her power would keep him from abusing her or her trust. Maybe she could compromise. She could try to get to know him, but she would bail out as soon as she found out she didn't like it.

"I can try Eric. Try getting to know you. But I need you to promise me one thing."

"What is it?" he asked watching her intently.

"Don't ever ask me about that briefcase you saw earlier. Let that be something that only I know about."

He contemplated that for a while, but conceded. As long as she couldn't access Faery, she was allowed to try to escape wherever she wanted. He would always haul her back. "You have my word. We're taking this slow. As slow as you want," he assured her.

_Compromise_.

They stood in silence for what seemed like hours. She tried to build her courage to look at him. She wanted to know his body, know more of him. None of their more intimate moments before had been instigated by her. He was always touching her, the palms of his hands marking their territory. Now she wanted to turn the tables and take control for once. Perhaps it would make her feel better. She moved closer feeling his curious eyes on her. She reached her hand and run her fingers up his right arm, circling his bicep. The tips of her fingers trailed up and down his chest. Her touch was feather light and it made his muscles jump in response. He seemed to like it.

"This was your sword hand," she said softly pressing her hand over his shoulder. His right arm was slightly bigger than his left.

She walked behind him perusing his back. Pressing closer but still not touching him with her whole body she inhaled his skin. He was standing very still.

"Can I touch you?"

"Yes," he hoarsely whispered.

She slid her hand down his shoulder blade to his lower back, naked hip and waist. His skin was smooth. Hard and almost impenetrable, but soft to touch. On his waist she found the largest scar he had carried with him to this afterlife. The skin slightly rose there, thick with scar tissue.

"You've got hit badly here."

He was breathing hard. What she was doing was reckless to the point of insanity, but she couldn't help herself. She ran her nose up his spine.

"My men were laying me to rest, when my maker found me," he told her.

"Were you scared?" She had been scared to death.

"No. I was pissed off."

"Of course you were."

Her touch followed the lines of a dozen smaller lines and scabs that shone silver against his pale skin.

"Those little ones healed and scarred, but a big cut on my side was too deep."

"What were you fighting?" she asked. Her hand moved to his strong thighs, quickly drawing across his perfect backside. She was just as riled up as he was. She wondered how he could keep still. She couldn't.

"We were pillaging a village on lands that belong to Denmark today. At that time the whole North was at war. There were constant power struggles between the many kingdoms that coveted our lands and silver. Our home was in today's Malmö."

She walked back to his front to see his face turned up to the sky. She brought her hand against his chest decidedly ignoring everything below his waistline. She was afraid to look. Her curiosity burned her, but she stood her ground.

"My maker was fascinated by the stars. They are our only constant companions," he said with a serene voice. Stars fascinated her as well. She thought if she would've liked or hated his maker. She didn't know much of him. She didn't know much of makers in general.

"Do you miss him?"

"Yes."

"Do you still feel him?"

He looked a little surprised at that question. He turned his eyes back to her. They were smoldering. She licked her lips.

"Yes."

His hand rose from the water and she saw what he was looking at. Her own scars.

"You can touch them," she said and inclined her head to the side.

They were two deep looking healed wounds. They were from a vampire bite, but it looked like as if her maker had ripped large hunks of flesh along with her blood. They were nothing but ugly. His hand covered them from view. When he spoke, his voice was somber.

"What did he do to you?"

"Many things," she said trying to avoid the subject in discussion to her best ability. "Let's just say I've never known such bond that you and your maker possibly shared. My maker was little more than a monster. I don't speak about it."

She pressed closer against his naked chest feeling something large and throbbing folding against her hip. He jerked from the touch. She brought down butterfly kisses across his chest ignoring his small trembling. His nipples tightened and she licked the tips of them. The sound of her fangs descending broke his control. His hands clamped on her hips trying to lift her up.

"No Eric," she said removing the hands from her. "Remember what you promised. No touching me unless I say so. Can I trust you or not? Do you keep your word like I do?" She smiled at him devilishly.

"Fairy you're killing me," he growled his own fang snapping down.

"I can stop."

She only felt his chest rumble in warning. Her hands molded over his abs, feeling them move and flex involuntarily. Being the brave girl that she was she moved down and finally touched his tip. Her small hand couldn't circle him fully. He was enormous. Silky skin moved with her fingers as she caressed him. His hips bucked and tried to press nearer her naked body. She felt more aroused than ever in her life.

"Lina," he growled again.

"You plan to fit this thing inside me Eric?" she whispered. She applied more pressure and speed. The look in his eyes was delirious. "I'm smaller than this. Much smaller. I bet I'll squeeze you almost painfully. I bet you'll rip me apart."

"I will fit," he managed to say from his ragged breathing.

Her other hand felt up his round backside. She moved her leg so that she could press her core against his thigh. She knew he could feel the heat. Licking and biting his nipple with her blunt teeth her fingers picked up speed. Not long after she felt him grew rigid, then convulse. His cock pulsated between her fingers and he roared for all of Bon Temps to hear. She purred feeling awfully pleased with her little stunt. She climbed up his heaving chest and pressed a kiss on his cheek.

"Dawn is near," she told in his ear.

Then she hopped down and walked back to her clothes leaving him looking stunned after her.

Yes, she felt exponentially better.


	14. Chapter 14

**CHAPTER 14**

Lina opened her eyes the next evening and lied very still. She was surprised to see she woke up just where she had laid herself to rest. She was not reaching for either a weapon or Eric. There was no panic of hearing or seeing visions of her violent past. Her senses weren't attacked by lust filled dreams. The day had gone by in deep rest and darkness that she welcomed with open arms. It was almost blissful.

She remembered the events of the previous night and grinned. She turned her face to her pillow and hugged it real hard, when she remembered Eric's face when she left him by the lake. She remembered watching him climb in his car and thinking when she planned to see him again. She was… she was happy. Not stressed. Not afraid of what was to come. Only happy. And being happy felt weird.

_Give love a chance_. She still felt like clubbing whoever said that to death, but there could be positive sides to this mating thing. She was ready to find out what they were.

When she climbed up the steps and out of her cubby she saw Sookie waiting for her tapping her foot. Her eyebrows were raised and lips pursed as she waited for Lina to start explaining herself. The fairy vampire had no idea what brought this on. She only knew she was about to get lectured.

A pissed off Sookie looked cute in a cartoonish way. Kittenish. It seemed Lina still had a thing or two to teach her. Her _scary look_ was seriously lacking.

"A rude man named Bobby came by. Do you have something you want to tell me?" Sookie asked her.

"The people I know in Bon Temps can still be counted with one hand. A rude man named Bobby is not one of them," Lina laughed.

"Apparently he's Eric's day man."

Sookie looked very peeved and Lina couldn't understand the reason. She went to the refrigerator to get her after waking blood fill, when she noticed what this bad-mannered Bobby person had brought with him. On the kitchen table there was an onyx black gift packet with a red ribbon and a bow. The funniest thing was the envelope on top. It was almost as large as the packet itself. Two words were written on it:

_READ ME_.

Lina had to bite her lip not to laugh and upset Sookie even more. The man had a humorous side to him. This time it didn't even cross her mind to ignore what he had written for her.

Good gods, she was starting to act like a schoolgirl with a crush.

Wearing an outrageously sappy smile on her face she opened the envelope and took the card in her hand.

_"Aislinn,_

_I want you to take two days and think about what I said. Both of our lives are about to change, but change is not always for the worse._

_I'll come to take you out the day after tomorrow. Would you wear this for me? _

_- E"_

The man had bought her a dress. And not just any dress. It was a gorgeous Herve Leger Stella Cross. A soft lilac beauty. A drool worthy piece of clothing. The man had some serious taste.

"He bought you a dress? You have thousands of dresses in the closet upstairs alone," Sookie said matter-of-factly and crossed her arms.

Lina turned around and shot her a surprised look.

"Is there a problem Sookie?"

"No."

"Good. For a minute there I thought you were snapping at me."

She turned the card in her hand. It looked a little too crumbled and Sookie looked just a little too guilty.

"You read this card?" she softly asked keeping her face in check.

Sookie only nodded with her cheeks flushed.

"And may I ask why?"

The other girl quickly got over her embarrassment and shot out, "Well, I was curious and you don't really tell me anything. We should get this house back from Eric and get him to leave us the hell alone. Not have him visiting us by night time. What the hell was his car doing in front of my house yesterday, Lina?"

"He dropped me home. We ran an errand," Lina simply said.

"What errand? Why aren't you telling me things? I feel like I don't know you at all and you're living in this house with me."

She had a point there.

Now it was Lina's turn to feel guilty.

"I… I'm sorry. What would you like to know?" she lifted her hands in surrender.

"What are you doing with _Eric_?" Sookie started and not with the easiest question there was.

What was the human equivalent of trying to see if a man was decent enough to spend an eternity with?

"I guess I'm dating him."

She felt like snorting but bit it back. He said he was taking her out, didn't he? If they were humans, it would be a date, wouldn't it? Of course if they were humans a lot of things would be different.

"You're _dating_ him?! Only thing that man's able to take on a date is his own ego," Sookie stated and shook her head. "He's not good for you."

"Not a lot of things are good for me nor am I good for them. You're forgetting again what I am," she smiled trying not to sound patronizing. It was a challenge sometimes.

"Ok, well how were you turned? Bill said it would be impossible to drink from me or let alone turn me, if I had just a few more ounces of fairy blood running in my veins. Your maker turned you, a full-blooded fairy. How did you survive it, when others haven't?"

Sookie knew she had crossed some line she had failed to see before, when she watched Lina's face grow stoic. In her frustration she had gone straight for the jugular not caring about the outcome. Her curiosity got the best of her. She felt a little ashamed when she met the other girl's hard look. Lina looked more like a vampire than ever.

"He had his fill before tasting my blood," her answer rang out.

Lina stiffly collected her gift from the table and headed upstairs. A very pretty Herve Leger. She would focus on that and not on her dead brother.

* * *

The night after her squabble with Sookie Lina had hopped in her car and headed for Shreveport. Dressed in a simple backless LBD and a white blazer she drummed her nails against the steering wheel trying to get her nerves straight. She was about to do something very daring and for that she blamed Isibil. The little spitfire of a vampire had gotten her ass moving with one simple conversation over the phone. She had roughly fished her out of the great river of D'Nile that Lina had been sailing the last few weeks.

Seeing the bright pink lights of Fangtasia looming ahead, she took a trip down memory lane. She smiled, when she remembered how the other vampire took her news…

Lina was standing in her room begging for Isibil to answer. The confrontation with Sookie made her realize a lot of things. She owed her friend an explanation and more than anything she owed herself a chance to talk to someone. Her head was about to explode. She needed somebody to tell her she wasn't making the biggest mistake of her life. And that someone was Isibil.

"So you're still alive," Isibil's slightly nasal voice rang.

For the first time in days Lina laughed freely. "Yeah. I'm checking in, kind of. Alive and well!"

"You sound different. Are you not in this very deadly, very secretive peril anymore?"

Lina paced her room nervously. This was harder than she thought. She had trouble getting the words out of her mouth. Bathing in a tub full of iron sounded more pleasurable than this.

"I'm waiting," Isibil reminded her.

"I might have something to tell you."

_I have a mate. Surprise?!_ No.

_You know that thing you and Matthias have going on…_ Fuck no.

Hanging up was starting to feel like a very good idea.

"It's a good thing I'm not getting any older here," Isibil muttered sarcastically.

"Shut up _Zicke_, I'm trying. I kind of ran into someone here in Louisiana. He…" her voice trailed away before the big confession.

"So it's a he."

Lina sighed. _Sink or swim_.

"He is my mate."

She covered her eyes with her hand as if that would make waiting for Isibil's reaction any easier. She was a goddamn coward. After a long silence and several nervous steps from wall to wall, Isibil's shriek almost made her ear fall off.

"HOLY FUCK!"

Then she listened to her friend taking quick breaths. She didn't know if this was a good reaction or not.

"You had me thinking you were dying there! You found your fucking mate and you made it sound like your funeral! LINA YOUR SECRETS PISS ME OFF!" Isibil screamed and cursed fluently in German.

And here Lina was standing by her car in the parking lot of Fangtasia. After countless times of hearing herself being called a heartless tramp and a gutless bitch, she decided to go to him. She didn't know what she was here to conquer, but it had felt like a good idea. Isibil's only advice had been to let go of her fears and stop thinking so much. So there she was skipping towards the front entrance in her platform heels.

She sashayed her way through the mass of protestors and was disappointed to find a burly looking man instead of lovely Miss Pam at the door. Winking at the bouncer she slipped inside. It was Saturday and the club was on full swing. There were vampires and fangbangers alike enjoying themselves on the dance floor, talking in the shadows of their booths or drooling at the half clad pole dancers. She saw familiar looking red hair sway from side to side as The King's progeny moved her body to the beat of the music. A hungry looking human boy was dancing behind her feeling up her thighs. _Young ones_. She had been there herself once.

Lina leaned against the bar counter and politely refused any drink. When her eyes found _him_, they never looked away.

Eric was sitting on his throne dressed in a sleek gray suit. His black shirt was half way buttoned up showing a teasing amount of his chest. Around his neck was a necklace she had seen before; a curved claw of a predatory bird. She could taste his authoritative presence from where she stood.

In front of him was a girl with bleach blond locks giving him her best attempt at swirling and grinding. His attention was on his phone much to the dancer's dismay. She kept flicking her suggestive eyes to him slowly rubbing her thighs and backside with her hands. At a point where she bent down so low that her jayjay must have been showing, Lina cracked up a smile. _Oh honey, get down there before you embarrass yourself._

The sound of her small, amused laughter caught Eric's attention. He raised his eyes away from the phone searching the crowd. When his gaze landed on her, she nodded to him smiling demurely. Then she felt a low voice breathe into her ear.

"I bet your crotch splayed open like that could get him to blink."

Pam was standing behind her with eyes gleaming with delight. It seemed she found as much pleasure in distracting and teasing her maker than she did. A shared hobby between them girls_._

"Miss Pam. It is a shame I don't do poles," Lina answered, but returned to stare at the man she came here for.

"A shame it is." Pam came very close to her sniffing her hair, but her maker's narrowed eyes had her walking swiftly away.

Lina was summoned. She left her spot at the bar making her way through the rocking bodies. A drunken fangbanger tried to reach forward to touch her, but she batted his hand away. She had no idea how Eric could stand this night in night out.

The Sheriff's undivided attention got the others looking. She felt curious eyes on her all the way up to his platform. She stopped right in front of him and drawled,

"Sheriff."

He was masking his every emotion. Without showing the crowd how he felt about her showing up tonight, he raised his hand on his chin. His eyes travelled along her figure, but it didn't make her skittish anymore. It made her feel powerful.

"Take a seat, Aislinn," he said and showed her to the chair on his right side. Then he turned his attention to the crowd. Every vampire in the room was looking at them. Every one saw there was something not right about the woman next to him, but what it was they couldn't say. With a flick of his hand he asked them to turn their stares elsewhere.

Lina sat on her chair and crossed her legs. Jessica was waving at her and she smiled back.

"I have to say I didn't expect to see you tonight," Eric said keeping as much details as possible out of their public talk. "What brings you to me?"

"Perhaps I came to observe you in your natural habitat," she answered assuming as blank expression as his was. She might have told one person the happy news yesterday, but she wasn't ready to broadcast it to the entire vampire population of Shreveport. "Thank you for your gift."

"It was as much for me as it was for you."

"I did what you asked. It's why I'm here," she said going straight to the point. It was time to end their games.

Eric turned to look at her. His eyes searched her face looking for any signs of a lie. When he found none, he leaned back against his chair much in thought.

"And what did you do last night?" he asked her brushing his chin.

"Mostly I was lectured. Sookie gave me hard time."

"You shouldn't listen to that girl's talk. She assumes too much about things she doesn't know," he said confirming her own thoughts.

"I know how to filter it now." She saw Jessica frown at her. The eavesdropping of others was slowly becoming a nuisance. She switched to speaking French. "I told about you to Isibil."

"You hadn't told her before?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I am the master of blocking thoughts that disturb me," she confessed.

A shy smile crept on his face. "I disturbed you."

"You know you did," she teased him.

"Why did you tell her now?" he calmly asked her. She could feel the air between them grow alive with electricity. Her body reacted with nervous anticipation like it knew they weren't going to spend a moment too long under the stares of strangers. She was ready to get out of here.

"Because I don't want to block you anymore," her steady voice told him. She looked deep in his eyes.

He rose on his feet just then and offered her his hand. Walking close to each other they descended the dais. His hand ghosted behind her back. His thumb moved in slow circles that sent shivers running up her spine. She could feel him behind her with every cell and pore in her body. She was more aware of him that she had ever been. They walked through the staff door and disappeared from the audience's view.

She listened to his quiet breathing and filled her lungs with his luring scent for the first time allowing herself to become captivated by it. Fighting it had been the most difficult thing she had had to in her life, surrendering was easy. She was taking a huge plunge straight through the rabbit hole without knowing what waited at the other end.

The office door closed behind them. Lina heard the click of the lock falling into place giving her a sense of entrapment. She felt hypersensitive standing there with her back turned to him. Taking deep breaths kept her panic at bay. She had promised herself to make an effort to trust him. She wanted to know how it felt being his. Would it be liberating to accept somebody's guidance and rely on someone with your life?

She felt his one hand on her backside, the other one on her stomach. He leaned down nestling his face to her neck and she felt his lips on her bare skin.

"I'm glad you came," he whispered in her ear. "It's a good sign, Aislinn."

His both hands travelled up from the swell of her hips to the concave of her waist, to caress the sides of her breasts. She allowed the white-hot flames of desire lick her senses.

The hands pushed the blazer down her shoulders revealing her open back. His cold breath tickled her skin. She let go of her every restraint.

Lina turned her head and captured his lips in a kiss. He responded to her eagerly savoring the taste of her. She moaned into his mouth and he took advantage of her lips parting. Quickly the kiss turned into a fierce claiming. He grabbed her long curls in one hand and her chin in the other driving his tongue deep into her mouth like he wanted to strip her from every idea of refusing him. His mouth was devouring away every last piece of her lingering anxiety.

He backed them against the office door pushing her back against it. He released her mouth to study her face. Her chest rose and fell with her deep breathing. Her eyes were glazed with longing.

Eric reveled in the sight.

"I will not take you here," he swore to her and she found herself ready to protest. "But you will be a good girl and obey me tonight."

He descended on her again. His tongue brushed her teeth tempting her fangs to snap down.

His hand took hold of the shoulder strap of her dress and pushed it down. She banged her head on the door when she felt him pinch her nipple and weigh her bared breast. Her lust seared her senses. There was only him.

His hand pushed the helm of her dress upward and pressed against her lace-covered mound.

"Eric," she sighed against his mouth.

"Mmm?"

His fingers pushed her panties aside and brushed her folds. She was on the verge of losing herself.

"I need you."

His nose brushed her jaw and her chin. "I know you do, little one."

With a harsh yank he ripped the fabric. She felt how wet she was for him. It was almost embarrassing. He pushed his fingers between her folds.

"You smell of apricots and cream. Not ravishing you right here takes a staggering amount of strength."

Then he started it; the slow but determined circling of her nub that she wouldn't ever forget.

It was almost teasing in its laziness, but the pressure was just right. She closed her eyes in total abandonment but felt his hand on her chin in an instant.

"Look at me, when I pleasure you."

She knew what he saw in her eyes. She must've looked fevered with the pressure of his touch guiding her nearer and nearer. It felt too good.

"Faster," she softly begged. She needed to have it. The knot inside her wound tighter.

Staring deep in his eyes she couldn't miss the mischievous glint. "No."

His fingers kept on the same torturing rhythm. It didn't pick up pace and the force never lightened. She concentrated on the feeling it induced, on the deep contractions in her core. He kissed her neck and her jaw. With ragged breaths she felt herself starting to tremble.

"Come for me," his gruff voice demanded and the words sent her off the edge.

The fierce wave of pleasure soared through her. She cried out and buckled against his hold fearing that her legs would collapse. His mouth was on her again swallowing all the cries and demanding her attention. He helped her ride through the peak.

His fingers never stopped the movement on her clit. After the intense orgasm she felt red hot and sensitive. She was ready to turn her focus on him. Lavish him with her touch like he had her.

He didn't let her. She groaned and tried to arch her back away from the door. She wanted to free herself from his stimulation. It was starting to burn her. "Too much. Eric, it's too much."

"You will take what I give you."

The look in his eyes nerved her and his impish grin caused her concern. A look like that on Eric's face couldn't mean anything good for her.

She squirmed under his touch, trying to escape his torturous fingers. Her clit was burning in protest of all this feeling and intensity. His fingers maintained the same slow teasing rhythm. The touch was so concentrated that it was almost painful. Instinctively she tried to move away from it and climb up his office door to find some relief.

"Stay still." His other hand clamped on her hip stilling her movement.

She only whimpered in response. She looked in his eyes begging for release.

Her breath hitched at the lust of his stare. He was enjoying this. Enjoying it very much. The look in his eyes held so much passion. This was an act of lust, desire and dominance over her.

"Focus on the pleasure. Relax and let go."

There was no escape. She willed her muscles to calm. She needed to relax against his touch or the burning would override everything. His scent soothed her and she found herself leaning against his neck.

"Don't you trust me, Aislinn?" he whispered repeating her own words from the night before. He was getting his sweet revenge.

She licked his neck and panted. His other hand held her head to him rubbing her neck and encouraging her to surrender to him again. The stimulation of his fingers turned from painful pleasant and from pleasant to wanted. Finally she felt the tension building again.

"That's it. You're there."

He licked the tip of her ear. The climax hit her like a lightning bolt; a fierce shock of spasms rocked her to her core. Her whole body shook against him. She cried out his name when he helped her through the violent shudders.

But he didn't stop.

She felt like crying out of intense satisfaction and torment. He had to let her cool down. The heat was killing her.

"No Eric, no more. Please no more," she begged. Her whole body burned hot and she felt the evidence of her excitement run down her thigh.

"One more, little one." His eyes were boring into her as much feverish as hers. He had to help her keep upright.

One more. Focus on the pleasure. She will give him one more.

She squeezed her eyes closed and tried to relax her body only once more. She was now breathing out loud taking quick gasps. She felt his erection strain against her thigh. She focused on it. How it would feel inside her.

One more for him.

And she did give him that. She went flying.

When he felt her peak, he slipped two of his long fingers inside her. Her muscles clamped around them, milking them with force when she climaxed. Her legs gave out and she fell into his arms. She molded against him, clinging to him like a little child. The intensity of it all lulled her to a sweet blissful state. She felt him lift her and place her on her back on the couch.

His tongue greedily lapped her thighs collecting all the wetness. She quivered and shook, when he cleaned her up rumbling in appreciation of her taste. He pushed his tongue inside her feeling the heat of her walls burn him. She was a boneless heap.

"You're like on fire. Not having you on this couch is the hardest thing I have had to do in a long time," he growled.

"Why don't you?" she asked coming back to Earth. She wanted him to.

"You deserve more."

He lifted her again placing her on his lap. She tried to gather herself, but the feel of his hand kneading her breast made it difficult.

"That was one of the most erotic experiences in my life, little one," his husky voice whispered in her ear.

She smiled lazily, her eyes heavy lidded.

"Do I need to comment or did my pussy speak for me?"

"The sass of you." He pinched her nipple roughly as a punishment making her moan deeply.

Lina turned to look at him bringing her hand to his neck softly caressing it.

"Where are we going tomorrow?"

His hand moved to her chin.

"You don't like surprises?" he asked.

"No, I like them. They keep me on my toes," she grinned. She leaned forward and pressed her lips on his. "Keep your secrets."

She looked at the watch in her hand and decided it was good to go now before she never left.

"I have to get back," she whispered and brushed her hand on his check feeling the light stubble of his shaved bread.

"I understand."

She fixed her dress and got on her feet. They felt wobbly after his attentions. Casting one lingering gaze on his body she picked up her blazer and was good to go.

"Thank you, Eric. For this night."

With a shy smile on her lips she went through the office door leaving only her heady scent of arousal to keep him company.

It didn't take long for another statuesque blond vampire with a crooked smile to appear at his door.

"Alltså, hon är en skrikare," Pam spoke in Swedish her grin reaching from ear to ear. She took a deep breath tasting the heavy air and blinked. "För fan."

"Hon hade en god anledning," Eric said and outstretched his legs on the couch. He had much paperwork to finish tonight and his fairy's forceful scent was going to render that next to impossible. The taste of her lovely nectar still coated his lips.

Pam walked in and leaned against his office desk. "Have you already talked about her turning?"

Surprised about the subject, he took a moment to respond. "No. She avoids talking about her past. I think her maker is to be blamed for that."

"Do you know how it happened?" Pam carefully asked.

"Not yet."

"Do you know who turned her?" They were about to discuss a very touchy subject. When he stayed silent, she continued, "I think you probably knew him."

She had Eric's full attention.

"How so?"

"It was in 1750s," she indulged.

"I was in Britain."

"So was she."

Eric rose on his feet and walked up to his progeny. He had come across Niall in Ireland and whenever the Fairy Prince's family visited this world, they all took residence there. He had assumed his fairy did so as well.

"Most fairies lived in Ireland."

"She told me it was in England. Her maker saw her there."

Pam sounded sure of this. 1750's was the time of the French and Indian war and the time he worked as an enforcer to the British Kingdom. The King had had a special way of giving thanks to his most loyal underlings. One night he had treated them with fairy blood.

A chill crept up his spine, when he remembered something that should've been left uncovered. It all depended on the year.

"Do you know the exact year she was turned?" he demanded of her.

"No."

"Where in England?"

"She told me that she and her friends had a thing for partying at royal ball rooms. I'm guessing London."

She and her friends in the royal ballrooms of England. It was too close to what he feared. It was impossible for fate to treat him this way. He turned his slowly building anger towards his progeny.

"When did she tell you this?"

"At the club."

"And you're telling me now?" he snarled at her.

"I tried -", she was going to explain but her excuse got cut off short.

"What else do you know?" Eric took hold of her cheeks demanding her to keep her eyes on him. Pam did not blink.

"Nothing. I only thought it was a hell of a coincidence that you told me you first feasted on fairy blood in 1700's England and that's when and where she was turned."

Pam watched her maker's face contort with fury. Fury at her for telling him, fury at himself for remembering something that could cost him his mate and fury at Lina for being there. His hands almost broke his child's jaw with the heavy pressure.

Looking deep in her eyes he commanded her, "You will not speak of this to her. Not tomorrow or in years to come."

He let go of her face and walked to his desk only to break it in half with his fist. The loud bang echoed against the music from the club.

"Did you know him? Her maker?" Pam asked nervously.

"I don't know."

* * *

Lina arrived at Sookie's home just before dawn. With fresh blood bags in her hands, she walked to the door and fumbled with her keys. Before she disappeared inside she caught three pairs of yellow eyes looking at her from the tree line. Three massive figures stood there following her every move.

Werewolves.

Noticing her close perusal the three wolves ran back to the forest. She had trouble surrendering to sun that day.

* * *

**A/N: So Eric got his revenge ;) Tell me if you need me to warn you about these type of scenes coming up. Some might be more Ma than M, but I'll try to keep them tasteful.**

**Sorry in advance. The next chapter might take a while for me to post, because I have a crushing amount of schoolwork ahead of me. But I'll try to update in a week or so.**

**And thank you for your lovely reviews. Some of the things in the storyline might be confusing at this point, but patience. Send me your questions and I'll answer them to my best ability without spoiling the story. I'll let you know what Eric remembered in the next chapter...**


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: If my TMI author's notes bore you to death feel free to skip this. :)**

**In this chapter I plan to introduce two new characters from SVM. I don't have the book/-s in which they appear and I don't really remember how Charlaine described them (even Google couldn't help me!) so I used my all mighty powers as a writer and made them look like how ****_I_**** always pictured them. So don't get mad if they are nothing like they ****_should_**** be. (I own nothing etc.)**

**My sincerest apology for bringing out the drama with Eric's upcoming memory. I'm not that good at writing feel good romances, so I stick to where I'm comfortable at. That is passion, blood, tears, rage and of course love. What is HEA without some heartbreak and angst? :) This chapter is going to be overflowing with drama, but I promise more hot smut goodness in the next chapters.**

**For those of you asking about mating, I'm going to shed some more light on it asap. Thank you for reading and sorry for the long wait!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 15 **

**_The Royal Palace, Kingdom of England 1757_**

The vampire king of England sat on a lavish divan in the upstairs indoor veranda all at ease. He was dressed in his finest dress suit to pay respects to the human fool's daughter who was about to make her debut in front of all the nobility and choice of gentry. The most influential people round the country had arrived here tonight with their primped up little girls to flaunt their wealth and talk politics. To him they were only cattle, blue-blooded or not. The vampire king was a man of cold and forbidding manners turned around his human age of 35. He had yet again overthrown a great threat to his authority and squashed his enemy with one genius and forceful attack. Now, he had come here to this royal ball to celebrate his victory in the only way he knew how.

There was a human girl on his lap who smelled of fear and desperation. The king was caressing her hair almost dotingly looking down from the upstairs veranda to the dancing mass of flesh in the ballroom. The girl couldn't have been sixteen years old. Her chestnut brown hair was messy on her face and her running makeup left long stripes down her rosy cheeks. The girl's beautiful lavender gown was stained with her own blood, and she shivered and sobbed in the vampire's ice-cold embrace. It was a perverse sight.

Behind the King stood his most loyal guard of enforcers. There were Alistair the Brute who trusted his physical force more than intellect, Fabri, the lover of men and Eric the Northman, his right hand and strategist, whom he confided most of his secrets. Eric was the man of cold logic admits a crowd of bloodthirsty young ones. The old Swedish vampire had no desire for his throne. He served him for the love of the battle and comfortable position it offered him. That is why the King respected him and listened to his advice.

The guard stood in silence also dressed in their best suits. Their eyes scanned the dancing couples and drunken humans. The King spoke to them.

"You know I always treat those who are loyal to me with special kindness. I'm a very generous man, especially tonight. We have a lot to celebrate my men. I didn't only bring you here to fuck virgins, although you are free to choose your favorite as I have chosen mine."

He kissed the top of the girl's head.

"It has come to my attention that our area has visitors. Four men with long hair that often pay visits to these kinds of human celebrations. They wear exquisite clothing made of silk and the finest of embroidery. Their faces are young and flawless, but their skin is tanned like a field worker's. They pass their time dancing and bedding young wives causing quite a scandal. No one knows where they come from or in whose house they belong to."

The King raised his hand and pointed to the dance floor below. All turned their attention to an odd looking trio of men drinking wine and laughing in the corner. They had an aura around them unlike anything other the guard had witnessed before. Standing amongst the pale faced humans they stood out like a beacon with their luminous glow.

"They're fairies," the King stated.

"That's impossible!" Alistair gasped and leaned forward to better examine them.

The three enforcers all drew in a long breath as if they could smell the flowery scent of the fairy men from where they stood. They all knew what was said about the intoxicating fairy blood, but not one of them had ever tasted it themselves. The men glanced at each other and a wide grin grew on their faces, when they did their math. One fairy for each. It was going to be a night to remember.

"Happy hunting, my men."

The three men hastily bowed to their King and turned to leave. But before Eric could take one step towards the stairs that could lead him to the most delicious blood he could imagine, the King stopped him.

"Northman. Stay."

The two others threw their fellow man a not so apologetic smile and disappeared down the stairs with vampire speed their hunger leading the way. Despite his severe disappointment Eric kept his face in check and addressed His Majesty.

"My King."

The King rose on his feet and threw the little girl from his lap. He straightened his suit and showed Eric the way with a crooked smile on his face.

"Why, you look like somebody just finished on your face. Come with me and you'll stop sulking."

The King walked near the stairs and leaned against the railing to peer at the dancing couples. The violins played a merry tune and people were crammed to the dance floor swaying to the rhythm and drowning themselves in wine. The King's eyes searched for something in the crowd.

"Your hard work and genius planning ensured our success. It solved the conflict for us to our gain. I have decided to reward you Eric the Northman."

Eric raised an eyebrow. "Thank you, King."

He watched as the two other vampires approached the fairies and a small commotion erupted, when they were seen. Without wasting any time one of the fairy men shouted out a warning to others before they escaped quickly through the doors and to the back yard of the King George II's mansion with Alistair and Fabri on their tail. But the King wasn't paying any attention to them. His gaze was directed at the back of the room where the fourth fairy man was pushing through the crowds to get to his friends' aid.

"You prefer women, don't you Eric?" the King asked.

"Correct," Eric said with a small smirk on his face.

Indeed, he liked England and its bountiful women. His life here was mostly pleasant. His work as an enforcer paid him good money and gave him the excitement in life he thirsted, but nowadays he found himself yearning for something more. After Godric and he had parted ways, Eric had travelled the world searching for new experiences with new faces. Maybe it was time for him to move on again. Maybe he was ready to start looking for a companion. Life was threatening to become monotonic and that was always a good sign for him to change scenery. But right now he was very interested in what the King was about to offer him.

The King had spotted something. His smile was genuine when he spoke, "Oh, there she is."

Eric followed his gaze to a small figure escaping through the masses to the opposite direction of the commotion. It was a woman or a girl with long blond hair and a beautiful golden white gown. A petite young thing. The girl pushed against people squeezing through and beating away hands that were in her way. She seemed determined to get away from the dance floor and away from the threat. She knew who they were and why they were here. She knew what vampires meant for her kind.

"A fair fairy girl. I hear she has a face to match that luring figure. Hopefully it will please you before you drain her. All yours my old friend," the King said and patted Eric's shoulder.

Eric watched the girl run to the chambers and disappear from view. He wasn't one to take women against their will, but this was different. It was only the fairy girl's blood he desired. She was a fascinating little creature that he wanted to see and feel. Tasting her could possibly relieve his ever growing boredom. He found himself hoping that she had a bit of fight in her or just a small amount of vivacity. Her cute face and body would only be a bonus.

Eric bowed low and gave his King a grateful smile. Then he sped after her.

People instinctively made way for him when he walked through the floor and headed towards the chambers. His height was remarkable and the sinister grin on his face had the humans backing away and lowering their chins in silent respect. Small hints of the girl's scent lingered in the air and Eric followed the trail she had left behind. Without hurrying his step he walked through a piano room to a small hallway. Then he stopped and listened.

The fifth door from the right was shut tight and her rapid heartbeat gave away her hiding place. The sound reminded him of the thrumming wings of a caged bird. He tasted the air around him. Bloom of heat and adrenaline made the scent of her blood more prominent and irresistible. It wafted in the air and lured him forward. His fangs snapped down in anticipation of biting into something so close to ambrosia.

He pushed against the closed door only to find out that some force was blocking him. He put in all of his strength, but couldn't make the door move. It wasn't locked as the handle gave in in his powerful grip. Something else was pushing back at him. He wondered if fairies had more physical strength than it was rumored.

The girl was probably trying to remain still and calm without letting out a single peep. She would want to let him think she wasn't there, but he could still hear her quickened breath. A vampire's prey could never hide in plain sight or even in five-mile radius.

"I can hear you breathing," Eric told her.

He heard a small whimper escape his fairy. He heard her sniff a few times. A scared little girl.

"I can hear you crying."

"Go away," a small croaky whisper answered him.

Eric tried to push against the door once more, but to no avail. If the girl was indeed doing this, he could always wait for her to exhaust herself. He had all the time in the world. He leaned against the opposite wall and crossed his arms. The excited grin never left his face.

"If you let me in I can show you there's very little reason to cry now, girl. I'm known to please women, not to give them pain."

He heard a tearing sound. The girl was doing something peculiar to her dress or to the curtains of the room. She was still gasping and sobbing, but she also seemed to huff about the room planning something. Eric hoped her energy gave out quickly. He was beginning to tire of this waiting game.

"Some say they can taste their gods in your blood. Some say your blood itself is the food of gods. To me you smell of the sun and summer air. Tasting you could remind me of my home."

Eric waited for her to give up. He could easily tear down the door to pieces, but he refrained. That was until a heavy dragging sound made him leap against it. The girl was doing something she shouldn't. He heard her pant from exertion as she was pulling something heavy behind it.

"What are you doing there, girl?" Eric asked and started to beat the door with his fists. It was made of wood and metal, but bit-by-bit it started to break. Inside the room the girl was very silent. Then a glass was shattered and he heard her give out an ear splitting scream. Eric threw himself against the door and this time it crumpled down like cardboard.

She wasn't there anymore.

The fairy girl had found a way to escape. A small window was broken and the late night air blew in. Glass shards were scattered across the floor colored with bloodstains. Her blood was splattered on the wall and the carpet. The girl had hurt herself badly to get away from him.

Eric looked at the torn skirts of her dress and the tiny shoes lying on the floor that she had abandoned in her haste. He looked outside the glassless window. In the darkness below the girl was running and limping for her life towards the woods. Her blond hair blew in the wind and he could see the soles of her blooded bare feet. The window was too small for him to crawl through.

Leaning against the windowpane he watched her fight for her survival. And he decided to let her get away.

**_Shreveport, Louisiana, Today_**

Eric opened his eyes waking up. A strong gush of panic, fear and horror washed through him. For a second he felt disoriented. Biting back the overpowering regret and fear of his own he willed himself to concentrate on the source.

It was the middle of the day and the feeling of terror came from Sookie.

* * *

Only an hour before Sookie was having a great day. Later she would have to do a late night shift at Merlotte's while Lina was on a _date_, but now she had time to clean her house, bake a pie and soak in some sun. She enjoyed the overly hot fall of Louisiana and was thrilled to catch up on her tan. Setting a towel on her deck chair, she slumped down and closed her eyes.

Lying in the sun in her teensy bikini she let her thoughts drift, but every time they came dangerously close to either _dates_, _vampires_ or _boyfriends_ she found herself scoffing. She didn't know why. It was strange. She didn't even want to hang out with vampires anymore. Except for maybe Lina.

Lina on a date with Eric.

Why would Lina even want to do that? Eric was vicious and egoistical. Maybe he was good looking, but that was all. He was probably richer than any oil tycoon, but so was Lina. Maybe it was the sex… But Lina said she usually went for girls? And why was Bill being so distant? Why was this bugging her so much?

"Good afternoon, Sookie," a bright woman's voice chimed from somewhere right above Sookie's face.

Completely startled Sookie sprung to her feet and wrapped herself in the towel. When her eyes adjusted, she saw two persons staring at her grinning. A woman and a man. Sookie hadn't heard them come and now they were standing freakishly close to her.

"How do you do?" asked the man standing right next to her chair.

The woman had a young face and shoulder length jet black hair that was styled in spikes. She was dressed in a black tight t-shit, micro shorts and combat boots. She was no taller than Sookie, but her straight posture made her look that way. And it made her look more threatening. There was something in her almost honey colored yellowish eyes that Sookie couldn't decipher.

The man was a male version of his female partner. His hair was shorter and it revealed his pointed ears.

_Fairies_.

_Friends or foes? Friends or foes?_ Sookie couldn't say.

"Hello. Can I help you?" she asked unsurely.

"Yes, sweet cheeks. We are here to see Aislinn. We heard she's staying with you here and, let's say, we were in the neighborhood. We're her old old friends," the woman said and her grin only got wider. The two hadn't moved an inch. They only stood there staring at Sookie.

Sookie's eyes flicked from the man to the woman. "And who are you?"

"Oh, forgive our bad manners. My name is Neave. This man right here is my brother Lachlan," said the woman and the man named Lachlan nodded to Sookie. The look in their eyes disturbed her.

"We wanted to say hi before the Portals close," the man, Lachlan, said and moved. He walked round Sookie and stopped right behind her leaning against the wall of her house. Neave sat on Sookie's deck chair and crossed her long legs. She looked almost amused, when her eyes travelled on Sookie's barely clad figure.

"It would have been rude to leave without a proper farewell, don't you think?" she asked Sookie.

"I guess. Look, Lina is not here at the moment. I think you should come back later."

Lina would know what to do and she would know who these people were. If only it was the evening. Sookie started hoping for the sun to set already.

"We have heard such wonderful things about you, Sookie Stackhouse. A human, but a fairy. You have our spark?" Lachlan asked from behind her. Sookie spun around to see him leering at her. She was getting really uncomfortable.

"You mean power? The light?"

"Yes, dear. The light," Neave purred.

"Yes. Yes, I have it."

"Well that's incredible, isn't it Lachlan?" Neave let out a sardonic laugh, which his brother returned.

"It surely is."

"I think you should go now. I'll tell Lina you came by," Sookie said and tried to stand a little taller.

"When do you think she's going to get it, Neave?" Lachlan asked his sister.

Neave tilted her head as if examining the human girl and finding her lacking. "I'm not sure. She doesn't seem very bright."

"You'd think she would have started running already," Lachlan whispered.

Sookie's panic peaked. Her eyes searched for a weapon but found none. Dressed only in her bikini and towel she took off running towards the cemetery. She got about ten feet away before she was roughly tackled down and lifted by her hair. She screamed in bloody agony feeling her hair being ripped off her scalp.

Lina snapped awake.

Sookie was in trouble. She felt her panic and anguish like it was her own. She was near still. The threat was right outside the house.

_The werewolves from last night._

Lina quickly got up, grabbed her katana and sprung out her cabby with vampire speed. But when she saw what was waiting for her in the yard her blood run cold.

Sookie was being held by the most sadistic sociopathic assassins in the Faery realm. Neave and Lachlan were known for their sick games and horror play dates, which they used to feed their victims' fear and cause them unbearable pain. Everybody feared them. Lachlan's knife was on Sookie's throat and his hand fisted her hair painfully.

"Well hello little Persephone. Took you long enough," he sneered to Lina and with a small _POP_ they vanished taking a squirming Sookie with them.

The sun was up. It was two in the afternoon and the scorching air tingled her skin. Fighting to keep her own panic at bay, Lina closed her eyes, her blood calling to Sookie's.

She was far. The two assassins had teleported possibly several hundreds of miles away from here. Sookie's terror punished Lina's senses like the girl was screaming inside her head. Like it was causing her physical pain Lina raised her hands on her forehead and willed it silent. The whirlwind of emotions made it hard to concentrate.

They had taken her near New Orleans. Close to the other Portal.

Lina zipped to her phone and dialed. When she heard the nasal voice of the answering machine, she almost crushed the phone in her hand. Patiently she waited for the fucking beep. She spat out everything without catching a breath.

"Niall, we have a problem. Neave and Lachlan were here. They have Sookie. It's the middle of the day and I need your men. My guess is they took her near the second Portal in New Orleans. I know where to find them but… Niall, the sun is up. I need help."

She hoped to every god there was that Niall got the message quickly. Then she ran to her clothes and threw on a long sleeved jacket and jeans. She almost ripped the door of the fridge off its hinges, when she dug out a large bag of blood. Then she stepped out to the porch.

She closed her eyes and measured her breaths trying not to let her fear and the brightness of everything frazzle her. Rays of light danced around and the heat of the air felt like a slap against her face. Three things she knew for certain. The sun would burn her when she flew. Her skin would bloom with blisters that would make every little movement painful. She would be weakened and easily overpowered. This was the biggest risk she had taken in a long time, but she had to do it. Sookie depended on her. She would not let them traumatize that innocent girl. Especially, when she was the only one who could prevent that.

But the sun would cripple her. For the first time in a long time, she felt genuinely scared.

Lina's phone was vibrating in her pocket. She quickly checked it hoping for Niall's call, but instead an unknown number was trying to reach her.

"Yes?" she snapped at the caller.

"Where are you?" a familiar low voice rumbled over the line. Lina bit her lip trying stay composed. Hearing his voice warmed her heart a little.

"Eric, they have Sookie," she whispered.

"Where are you Aislinn?" he repeated like he couldn't give a fuck who or where Sookie was.

"Still here... at the house- " She tried to figure out what exactly she was still doing here. She should be out protecting the girl, not standing grounded to her spot. "- getting ready."

"Do not go to her," Eric said but it was more like a plead that a command.

"Don't say that. You know I have to."

"You will hurt yourself if you walk into the sun and I won't be able to sit still if you do."

She swallowed and tried to sound brave. Sookie's pain and fear were pounding in her head and his words weren't making this any easier. "I called for backup. It's going to go fine."

"Aislinn, you and I both have made enough sacrifices for that girl. It ends here. Do not go outside."

"I promised her. Niall isn't picking up his phone and there's no one else! I can feel her stabs of pain like slahes of knives."

"Listen to me. They took her away intentionally. Sookie would be dead if that was all they were after. They're attacking you. It's a trap Aislinn and I forbid you to fall into it. Stay inside and wait for sunset. I'm coming for you," he said trying to calm her, but his frantic words only hurt her more.

She shook her head. "They're psychopaths, Eric. Sookie will die or face horrible trauma if I wait any longer. I have seen what they do. It's not just a game of hide and seek with them."

"Little one, we'll help her. I promise we will..."

"When the sun sets come to the house. I'll be back with her as soon as I can. The sun won't kill me remember? Come to the house."

"Aislinn!" he roared.

She clicked the phone shut and shot into air.


	16. Chapter 16

**CHAPTER 16**

**A/N: This chapter is rated M for so many reasons I lost my count! A potentially disturbing scene in the beginning… I stayed true to Neave's and Lachlan's characters minus the incest, which quite frankly grossed me out in the book. Sweet heavens, that girl Charlaine's imagination…**

* * *

Sookie was slowly coming back to her senses after passing out from blinding pain. She felt something warm dripping down her forehead, past her lips and dropping onto her chest. Her head was drooping as if it weighted a ton and its odd angle made her neck ache in protest. Cold sweat was springing from her skin and the warm heat of the sun was doing nothing to stop the cold chills from running up and down her body. She was sitting on her poor legs and her hands were tied behind her back. The rope around her wrists was coarse and dug deep into her skin. Without opening her eyes she tried to feel her numb limbs. The throbbing pain on her thigh must have been the reason she had passed out in the first place. It was a knife wound. She was afraid to open her eyes to check the damage.

"Wakey, wakey eggs and bakey."

Something hard was repeatedly nudging her ribs and she lifted her head to see the disturber. Right before her face, a row of razor sharp teeth were glinting in the sun like jagged diamonds. Yelping she tried to crawl back only to land on her face in the grass. The crowd around her broke into peals of laughter.

"So sorry to wake you, but we're still missing the guest of honor," Lachlan beamed at her and lifted Sookie by her armpits dragging her on her back. His teeth were nothing like natural human teeth. They were like needles or small multiple fangs.

Swallowing down her shock and scare, Sookie looked around seeing that they were right in the middle of a small opening in a forest, possibly several miles from the nearest residential area. Though, it didn't matter. Screaming her lungs out wouldn't help her more than begging these monsters for mercy. She had no idea how near or far from Bon Temps this place was, since she had never seen it before. The sun was still shining brightly with no cloud in sight, although she could guess the evening was approaching quickly. But not quickly enough.

"We fear our guest is lacking the proper incentive. She can feel your emotions and your pain, doesn't she?" Neave said and crouched over Sookie's face smiling like someone you would like to lock in a room and throw away the key. She lifted her hand to touch Sookie's face, but the girl flinched away. There were six other fairy men around them tapping their swords against their legs and looking impatient and bored. Tall muscled men with swords and no empathy in their eyes feeling bored around their hostage couldn't bode well for Sookie. Time was running out.

She silently begged for Lina to find her. She could track her by Sookie's emotions and finish these lunatics with her power. Sookie was a Christian, but now she allowed herself a little smile when she thought about the fairies dropping dead in front of her.

"You're all going to die. She will rip you apart," she muttered out loud, but that only managed to further excite them.

Neave sniggered and pulled Sookie from her hair bringing her face closer to hers. "Little Aislinn, our very own Persephone? Are you sure you want to put your trust in her? People who are close to her happen to die very violently. You will be no exception."

"Did you know that cunt led her brother to death? Served him as an appetizer for her great _Maker_? That was so sad," Lachlan said and shook his head in fake sympathy.

Sookie didn't have time to contemplate that piece of information before the fairy man produced his knife from somewhere and brought it against her stomach. With the tip of the blade he started to draw shapes into her skin without piercing it. Sookie could only look down horrified and tried to suck her belly in to escape the scraping.

"I heard she bargained his brother to that vampire for a chance at eternal life?" asked one of the bored looking men.

"That's fucking stupid. Who told you that?" Neave snorted.

"I heard she spread her legs for that fanger. The drunken bitch couldn't tell apart a leech from a real man," another man called out and the whole group broke into a nasty laugh once again. The man leaned forward and asked Sookie, "Are you a vampire-loving whore like your precious guardian is?"

Sookie only trembled in response. Lachlan's blade was pressing down her skin and she couldn't concentrate on anything else than avoiding sudden movements.

"Well, I _know_ she never even learned how to teleport. Her valiant brother Ronan had to run to her aid because the stupid cunt didn't even know how to save herself. And he got eaten and that eyesore of a woman is still alive. Or dead, depends on how you look at things, don't it? Are you sure you want to trust someone that weak, Sookie dear?" Neave asked her and batted her lashes. Her picture perfect face was tarnished by her cruel smirk and mad eyes.

Sookie felt tears prick her eyes. Lina's brother had died in the hands of her maker. She had lost someone dear to her to a man that took her from her home. That's why she didn't talk about it. That's why she was so distant about when speaking about her family. Strong wave of pity and compassion welled over her, but more than anything else she felt shame for questioning the girl so harshly before.

"Even her own mother disowned her. So so so sad," Lachlan chimed in.

Neave pointed to the men around them. "You see these gentlemen here? Of course you do. These men have waited for so long to snap her little neck."

"What did she ever do to you? Broke your heart? Refused to go on a date with gutless freaks like yourself? Eight against one," Sookie spat and tried to channel her sorrow into rage.

"Gutless… what an interesting choice of words," Lachlan whispered in her ear.

His knife pierced her skin. Her vision blurred and she felt herself slipping again into unconsciousness. She faintly felt the pain, when the psychopath slashed her once more. She knew she was losing a lot of blood, when she felt the shivers of cold. She watched them with unfocused eyes feeling very distant from everything around her.

Lachlan was standing above her admiring his work, when something landed on top of him knocking him to the ground. Sookie watched as that something tore out his throat and shot into air carrying his limb body. She saw flashes of bright light burst from around her shooting into the sky. But then she slipped into the more comfortable numbness.

Lina sank her fangs into Lachlan's throat and drank earnestly. She escaped the bursts of light into the shadows of the forest and watched her badly burned skin heal some. She felt weak and struggled to stay focused on her enemies. Her face burned and her hands could barely hold onto her katana. But the effects of the fairy blood were astounding. Energy rushed inside her once more.

"Lachlan! Lachlan! Come out bitch and I'll fucking shred you to pieces! I will stake you and set your remains on fire you worthless fanged whore! I'll kill you for this," Neave's hysterical words rang in the air. More bursts of light shot past her.

Lina threw the drained body to the ground and watched them spread out looking for her. They trashed the forest and ran around systematically not letting any movement escape their attention. She stayed still until she saw Sookie lying unconscious with two of the men guarding her body. The girl was still alive, but not for long if she didn't get to her soon. Her face was starting to ashen and her life was withering away. She could feel her slipping farther into darkness. There were too many men for Lina to handle alone. She would have to go to her and run. Even one blast of light could stun her because of her vulnerable state.

Lina zipped towards them trying to avoid their attacks and chose to take out the nearest unknown soldier of Breandan first. Her reflexes were not as great as they usually were, but she still had her speed. She tried to zigzag her way to the man. She got behind him and embraced him like a lover would but slid her blade over his throat finishing him. Immediately she scanned her next target between her and Sookie.

She swirled around and fought him with the sun making it a fairly equal fight. The man relied on his strength and height over her, but Lina usually beat her opponents with agility. Her fighting looked fluid and graceful, almost as if choreographed. She danced the dance of death around the crazed man and overpowered him with her speed and calculated hits. Their swords clung together several times while the man struggled to resist, until Lina finally hit him successfully on his side. Unbalanced, the man fell on the ground and Lina sank her blade into his spine. Again she pounced to run to Sookie.

But then she got shot with the light on her shoulder.

Her body flew like a ragdoll against a tree and she fell in a heap to the ground. Before she had a chance to get up and save herself she felt her attacker's sharp teeth sink in her shoulder tearing the burned skin. She screamed in pain and tried to push him away from her, but he clung to her like a parasite.

Her attacker lifted his mouth from her shoulder and grinned at her his teeth coated in her blood. "I'm going to enjoy ending you." Then he pressed his own blade on her arm and slashed watching her writhe in agony.

Suddenly multiple loud sounds filled the opening and an army of 15 fairy guards appeared from thin air. Lina's attacker lost his cool.

It was over in seconds. The fairy men eliminated the rebellious group, one man finishing off Lina's attacker with a swift blow, while Lina only watched in silence covering her injuries with her hand. They were so fast and made it look so easy, she couldn't but grunt in respect and irritation that they arrived only just now. The fairy men with long hair and light armor were Niall's. They carried his seal. She watched their enemies fall to the men's feet Neave's body lying closest to her, her empty eyes staring into nothingness.

Lina dragged herself to Sookie and kneeled over her unconscious body.

"Sookie…" she whispered and analyzed her injuries. Sookie needed her blood and she had to get her home. Fortunately the sun was starting to set behind the horizon, but there was another way than flying that would get them home much faster.

Lina glanced at Niall's men, who had piled up the bodies ready to take them with them into their realm. They all stood in silence looking at the two women covered in blood and grime with an uncharitable expression on their faces. They stared at her fangs and burned skin with narrowed eyes. Lina was about to ask them if they could take them through the Portal to Sookie's home so she could better heal her, when all of them turned their backs. Lina watched them take their leave with her mouth hanging open. They didn't offer to help. They were here on orders and now they were ready to go back. To hell with the victims.

"Thank you," she shouted after them, when they disappeared again leaving the two women alone in the opening.

* * *

Bill was pacing around Sookie's yard throwing nervous glances at the darkening sky and at his Sheriff, who was standing still as a statue staring in the clouds. The King was panicking. He had felt Sookie's fear, but he was forced to stay inside and endure her suffering, while the sun kept him prisoner to his home. Then everything had stopped.

"I can't feel her anymore. Can you?" he asked the older vampire. He was afraid that she was dead.

Eric didn't indicate in anyway that he had heard him.

"Eric! Can you feel her?!" he shouted.

"Barely," the older vampire answered him without taking his eyes off the sky.

"Why?"

"She's lost a lot of blood."

"Can you tell me where she is?"

"No."

"Is she in pain?"

Eric was silent for a moment. His jaw was clenched hard, every muscle in his body tight and coiled with the strain of keeping himself in check. "She's alive."

"We should go after them. Do something. I can't just stay still and trust only that woman to…"

Eric cut him off by raising his hand in a gesture of rejection and finally surveyed his King with a look of disdain on his face. "If you ever refer to my mate with that little respect, I will break you in half, King or not. She's the only reason your human is still breathing."

Bill opened his mouth to bark out an order feeling the need to re-establish his control over the other man, but shut it when he saw Eric's pained eyes. Eric was still looking at him like he was filth, but his eyes revealed much more that he probably would have liked to show. He seemed to be even more on edge than Bill was.

"If she is your mate as you claim, can't you at least feel _her_ in some way?" he asked.

"Do not speak of things you don't understand," was Eric's curt answer.

"I am your King! You owe me an answer."

"When it comes to my mating bond, I owe you nothing."

Suddenly they saw a figure approaching and fast. Strong whoosh of air hit them, when Lina landed right in front of the two vampires and fell on her knees. In her arms she was carrying Sookie, who had her face hidden behind Lina's hair. She was feeding from her neck gripping the fairy vampire's shoulders for support. Lina's face was pale and there were dark shadows under her eyes giving her a haunted, suffering look that veiled her beautiful face. But her skin looked worse.

It didn't take long for Eric to decide that the human girl had had enough and he yanked Sookie away from his mate's neck. He took Lina in his arms sheltering her from Bill's horrified eyes. She lifted her gaze to him and she offered him a shy smile.

"Hi," she croaked. Her voice was a little raspy and he could see she was yet again hiding her real pain behind the forced smile. He admired her for her bravery and strength, but he didn't want to give her any suggestion that he somehow valued her foolhardy courage and the need to suffer in silence. "I'm okay."

Eric said nothing, only studied her face and body taking in her wounds and burns. He felt rage bubbling under his skin waiting to break out, but with a grand effort he kept himself calm. Helping and healing her was his priority. She would never harm herself like this again and no one could stand a chance of attacking her. This he swore.

"I look hideous. I can see it in your eyes."

"You're gorgeous," he whispered.

Her bleeding had stopped, but angry looking scars on her shoulders and hands refused to heal. She needed blood. Lots of it and quickly. He lifted his wrist to his mouth wanting it to be his blood that healed her, but Lina tugged his sleeve.

"No, Eric," she said and turned her head away.

His face was thunderous. "Stop fighting me at every turn!" he snarled.

She looked a bit shocked but recovered fast. "No. I want it, Eric. I want to share blood with you, but not this way."

"What way then? What is a better moment than you suffering in front of me?! You bleeding to death? Is that enough?"

She bit her lip in a nervous gesture and his grip on her waist tightened. "I want it to be just us then. I have never had anyone's blood, so I don't know how it'll affect me - or us. I don't want Bill to witness it or Sookie. Just us."

He searched her eyes. Pressing his lips in a tight line, he nodded uneasily.

"There's lots of blood in the fridge. I'll just have to get to it. You can feed me that," she continued and laughed weakly.

He lifted her up.

"I can walk...," she whispered.

"Try downplaying your injuries to me once more, Aislinn, and you won't like what I do."

Eric carried her to the kitchen and seated them both on the floor, Lina between his legs leaning her back against his chest. Keeping one hand securely around her he got three large blood bags out of the fridge and tore one open. He brought it to her lips and watched her devour the blood with big hungry gulps.

He tried to be gentle when he pressed her tight against him and tried to calm himself by breathing in her familiar scent. He wanted to convince himself that she was going to heal, but irrational fury against every living soul still dominated his emotions. He wanted to carry out his own vengeance against every man that had harmed her. He understood his Child's concern, when she spoke about his near bordering obsession. Fear of losing her now that he finally had her was incapacitating. He cared about this woman on his lap with a sort of fanatical devotion, and couldn't stand the thought of never seeing or touching her again. This feeling went against his every self-preserving instinct and trespassed upon the idea of self he'd spent his entire existence trying to construct.

Bill carried Sookie inside. The girl was clinging to the other vampire's neck, laughing wildly and kissing him on his cheeks. Bill was cooing at her smiling lovingly now that his woman was safe and sound. All the giggling and hugging rubbed Eric the wrong way. He glanced at his mate's burn marks and wounds and felt bitter anger seep into his gaze. But then he felt a hand on his cheek.

"Stop glaring at her. She's only had a lot of my blood. I'm more worried about the moment her laughter dies away," Lina whispered.

Eric turned his eyes away from the happy couple and nuzzled his face in Lina's neck stroking her tenderly. His fairy was already downing her third bag of blood and her body started to recover. The lovely bronze hue of her skin was returning and she looked more alive. Eric tried to keep his thoughts away from his memory, but failed miserably.

Lina's long blond hair was caked in blood. He fingered her locks picturing them blowing in the wind, as the fairy girl's had, when she ran away from him into the woods in 1757. Her hair was just the right length, right color. He watched Lina's tiny feet rest against his much bigger ones absentmindedly brushing against his ankles. He thought of the small shoes abandoned on the floor of the King George II's mansion. Those silky shoes would fit her perfectly. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to concentrate on her scent to fight the nausea.

"Eric," Lina breathed out. He felt her tapping his arm that circled her waist. "Eric, you're squashing me."

He instinctively let go and murmured, "I'm sorry."

She laughed softly not understanding the desolate tone in his voice. She caressed his arms. "It's okay, I just can't drink with these two steel bands making a mess of my insides."

Lina took a few gulps more and studied her hands. Only some faint red marks remained, but they would fade with a good day's rest. She still felt beaten and possibly looked even worse.

"Thank you. All better now," she said and turned to smile at Eric, who was watching her with a pensive look.

"I want to bathe you," he said to her drawing her nearer and lifted her into his arms again.

"I feel like a child. Maybe I could get used to this," she laughed, when he carried her to her bathroom upstairs.

"You should."

He placed her on her feet next to the bathtub and got the water running. He sniffed some of the bottles set beside it, chose the one that smelled of pleasant earthy sandalwood and poured its contents in. The hot water began to steam up the bathroom. He helped Lina out of her clothes and lingerie, planting a soft kiss behind her ear. Lina carefully stepped into the bath and lowered her body into the water sighing contently. There was nothing like a bath to relax sore muscles and make a woman feel pampered.

Eric took off only his jacket and crouched next to the bathtub reaching for the shower milk and the sponge, when he met her incredulous eyes.

"That is how you plan to bathe me? Are you my father or my lover?" she asked him slightly amused.

Eric only responded with a ghost of a smile and dipped the sponge into the water. Lina stared at him completely befuddled.

"You're not acting like yourself. What is going on?"

Eric averted his eyes.

How could he tell her? The news would break her. He was now certain the scared girl in that room had been his Aislinn. He had spent all this time building her trust in him only to crush it into unmendable pieces. He desperately needed more time to think it through and ask questions. The guilt was eating him alive and he was powerless to stop it.

"You're still healing. I just need to wash all this blood off you. I don't want to take advantage of you being so vulnerable," he answered her.

Lina thought she had just entered the Twilight Zone. Who is this man and what has he done to her Eric? Take advantage of her being naked and vulnerable? _This man? Really now?_ He was talking to her like she had just grown herself a maidenhead, afraid to steal away her innocence.

"Believe me I'm not that fragile. Get in here." When he still hesitated, she stood up and offered him her hand. "Eric, get in."

He took off his clothes watching her warily and threw them on the floor standing in front of her in his naked glory. Eric was very handsome with his broad shoulders and well defined muscles in all the right places. And he was very generously endowed. Lina felt herself heat up and melt in the sight.

"I won't touch you if you don't want it," she cheekily repeated the same words he had told her by the lake and grinned.

Shaking his head he got behind her and enfolded her against him.

"I was worried," he whispered in her ear and ran his hands along her body making her shiver.

"I know. I'm sorry."

While Eric washed her hair, she told him what happened after she woke up to her cousin's fear. How she had found her almost a little too late surrounded by eight Breadan's men. How she kept her energy up by draining one of their attackers, but how the sun stripped her of her power and reflexes. How her body weakened in the bright light and finally almost collapsed after one vicious blow on her shoulder.

"Niall's men came and finished off the rest of the attackers. But it really wasn't their fight and that became painfully clear to me, when all our enemies were dead. They saw me trying to revive Sookie with my skin burned and covered in blood. With a distant look on their faces, they turned away and left us. They did their job and couldn't care less if we survived the aftermath or not. If it had been 265 years earlier they would have done everything in their power to see us safely back home. Not anymore."

Eric rested chin on her head much in thought. His hands rubbed her shoulder blades and Lina felt herself unwind under his slow ministrations.

"I don't belong with them anymore, Eric. I'm not one of them. It's hard to come face to face with a truth that you've been desperately avoiding for so long. Hoping that everything would turn out fine, if I just stayed close to my kind," she scoffed feeling a little stupid and naïve to have thought of that. "They are my past. I'm finally beginning to accept that. I don't know why everything feels just so difficult."

"I am going to help you through it," Eric said and gave her tiny kisses on her neck. "We have still much to talk about and much to share, Aislinn, but I think we're learning. I have my secrets that I would like you to know someday and you have yours, but we don't need to rush it. We will step on each other's toes and fight brutally possibly more than once before we are there, but I'm glad about what we have."

He took hold of her hips and turned her to face him.

"I care about you more than I would like to admit," he murmured to her earning him a soft smile. Her eyes twinkled with delight. She brushed the hill of his cheek, then slid her fingers up his nose, across his forehead and pushed some wayward wet strands of his blond hair back. Eric relished her touch.

"Kiss me," she whispered.

And he did. He crushed his mouth to hers, kissing her with fierce passion and only stopping to see her glazed eyes stare back at him, her lush lips puffy. He kissed her again pressing closer against her naked body. Eric darted out his tongue and Lina parted her lips to let him in. They kissed without any hurry not pushing it to greater things. Despite the day's many challenges they both felt peace.

Lina's hands roved over his chest tracing the lines of his muscles. Her touch felt reassuring like balm on a raw wound, far too compelling to resist. She kissed him passionately with her soft lips driving him closer and closer to losing his restraint. She ran his tongue over his fangs teasing his nerve endings. Eric felt her push against his erection and slowly move her body up and down. He brought her hands on her waist and moved them up until he caressed her breasts. She felt so good in his hands that it was surreal.

Suddenly Lina stopped moving. He looked to find out what was wrong, when he saw the fevered look in her eyes. He felt her hand circle his manhood bringing him such guilty pleasure he let out a groan. He only wanted to be closer to her and feel more of her. She lifted her hips teasing her opening with the tip of his cock. Eric's eyes widened.

"Aislinn."

Looking deep in his eyes, she slowly descended on him, impaling herself on him. Inch by inch she took more of him inside her loving the sensation. Moaning in ecstasy she brought her hands on both sides of his face.

Lina was trembling. He was enormous. Her walls clamped around his length as she snugly fit him in. Trying to get used to the feeling of fullness she leaned her forehead against his, breathing deeply. The way their bodies connected intimately and melded together, was worth every struggle they had had and every hurdle they still had ahead of them.

She didn't dare to move. His length stretched her, filling her to the hilt. Feeling of him inside her, like a part of her, was intoxicating.

Eric claimed her lips in a hungry kiss. He panted with the effort it took to remain immobile underneath her. "There are no words to this. Aislinn, I-"

"Lina?!" Sookie's voice rang out and they heard her stomp her way upstairs.

Both their heads snapped at the door. They heard the other girl sobbing as she opened the door to Lina's room and moved about.

"This is not happening," Lina wailed.

"Not now!" Eric roared, but they still heard the girl's sniffles and her steps getting nearer. Eric hugged Lina closer to shield her from view if Bill came following.

"Lina?" Sookie's broken voice called out again, before she opened the bathroom door.

"For the love of…" Lina buried her face in Eric's neck. If she couldn't see Sookie, just maybe Sookie couldn't see her.

It was dead silent before she heard the girl scream. "OH MY GOD! I'm so sorry. Oh my god," Sookie kept repeating and ran to the bedroom with her hand over her eyes.

"I would like to traumatize her myself for this," Eric muttered and smashed his fist to the porcelain.

Lina laughed bitterly. She couldn't wait to get out of this house.


	17. Chapter 17

**CHAPTER 17**

Eric walked through the bathroom door dressed only in his black jeans and glanced at the human girl still holding her hands over her face. She was sitting on the bed cross-legged, shoulders hunched up, slightly trembling. Her hair was messy and stained with her own blood. Lina's jacket covered her upper body. Right now she may have looked weak and small, but Eric wasn't on a sympathetic mood.

He leaned against the opposite wall and stood there, watching Sookie hiccup once in a while. His blond hair was dripping water and his chest still glistened from the steam. His posture was laidback, but his blue eyes blazed with anger as he stared at her. He was strung out. Every muscle in his body was tight. Between wanting to do something very harmful to this insolent girl and go continue what they started in the bath with his mate, kiss his way up the inside of her thigh and slide into her heat, he was a living breathing steel cable.

"Look at me."

Sookie carefully removed her hands to reveal her tear-filled eyes and placed them on her lap. She raised her head to meet Eric's stone cold glower.

"I- I'm sorry Eric. I didn't know…" she started but shut it when she saw his mouth twitch in scorn.

He had never been angry with her like this before. He had never reproached her or yelled at her, not with sincerity. It scared her.

"Did you or did you not hear me say not to come inside?" his voice was level, but Sookie could see the effort behind it.

"I already said I'm sorry. I need to talk to Lina. Tell her something. I didn't realize I was interrupting."

Lina's sweet blood had completely healed her wounds. She remembered the pure sensation of ecstasy that had shot through her, when the blood found its way to her bloodstream. It had dulled her pain and sent her flying. But once she came down from the remarkable high it induced, her body had started to shake and all the memories of the fairies' cruel words started ringing in her ears. Eric's furious eyes glaring murder at her didn't exactly help her to calm down. She glanced at the bathroom door begging for Lina to show up and rein in his anger. She seemed to affect his temper on some level.

"I don't know what has gotten you to think you can trespass others' privacy the way you just did, Miss Stackhouse. Maybe you think your talent gives you privileges. Maybe you never learned respect because of it. You have your naïve beliefs that you may do what you please and disturb who you like in the name of foolish bravery and self-assurance. I'll have you know I've killed people for less than what just happened."

Sookie's eyes narrowed. "Is that a threat? You won't kill me. Lina-"

"My mate saved your life tonight almost at the expense of her own. You owe her your outmost respect, but you have a funny way of showing it," he continued. "If I see that you're ever abusing her kindness, you will face me."

Lina got out of the bathroom drying her hair with a towel. She was dressed in a silky nightdress after deciding to go to rest a little earlier to heal her skin. With a quick glance at Eric's direction, she sat right beside Sookie slowly lifting one leg over the other. Sookie sat a little straighter now that she had her cousin with her and brushed the tears from her cheeks.

"Tell him, Lina. Tell him I didn't mean it. Of course I didn't," she announced.

Lina stayed quiet for a moment studying Sookie. She leaned forward like she wanted to tell her a secret, but said nothing. Her face was unreadable. Sookie couldn't tell if she was angry, amused, or disappointed, or all the above. The air in the room thickened, as Sookie noticed her cousin wouldn't clear her conscience with an easy smile or a quick hug as she usually did. She was slowly losing her confidence looking deep in her protector's eyes.

With a calm voice Lina spoke, "Sookie, let me ask you something… If you were to, let's say, slap me in the face this instant with all the strength you have, do you think I would be able to turn my other cheek as your Jesus taught you to?"

Surprised by the question Sookie glanced at her hands before she started nodding. Lina nodded along.

"Yes. Yes I could. You could slap me again and again to your heart's content and it wouldn't hurt me one bit," she gave her a small smile. "But tell me Sookie, if I slapped you, could you do the same?"

Sookie shook her head. Her head would probably fall off.

"So why do you constantly disrespect those who can by doing so little cause you so much harm?"

When Sookie couldn't answer she continued, "It's good that you are able to stand up for yourself, but learn not to cross any boundaries, if you don't want us to start doing the same."

"You wouldn't hurt me."

"No, I wouldn't, but why is that?"

"Because those who have power shouldn't use it."

Lina heard Eric give out a dark laugh and she herself smiled at the thought of Sookie yapping at the Authority about their horrible power abuse.

"That's a very cute thought. You can talk about it with your boyfriend the King. But no, I wouldn't because I care about you," she put her arm around Sookie's shoulders and nudged her a little. "So… how are you feeling? You obviously have something on your heart. What is it?"

Sookie turned her head to her with a shy look on her face sensing that the third degree was finally over. "I… I wanted to say how sorry I was and how grateful I was that you came for me even if it hurt you."

"Of course I came."

"I'm so sorry for everything."

Eric crossed his arms obviously growing impatient with the girls' little heart to heart. Lina could feel his eyes on her demanding attention. His gaze on her body felt like a physical caress after what happened in the bathroom only moments ago. She felt naked in the flimsy silk dress. Her skin tingled when she remember how good it felt to be with him. Feeling him filling her to the hilt. He could stroke her and reach places that nobody else had before. And she could have forever to touch him and love his body. Before she could stop that train of thought, she felt her body responding. Eric's eyes flicked to hers and a knowing grin formed on his face. It was a struggle to remember what they were actually talking about.

"Neave and Lachlan were not known for their good intentions. I hope they didn't have time to do you too much harm. We can talk about it later if you want," she said to Sookie and rose on her feet ready to drag Eric with her to her cubby and curl up against him. But then Sookie said something unexpected.

"I heard about your brother," she whispered. She brushed her hair back nervously knowing that Lina wouldn't like her talking about the subject. She felt horrible and guilty, and she wanted Lina to know that. "I'm so sorry I questioned you that way about your turning. I don't know what came into me. I just want you to know that I'm sorry for your loss."

"My brother?" Lina asked and turned to look at the girl eyes wide. She cringed, the hair rising on the back of her neck. Eric walked behind her and reached his arm around her waist keeping her close to him.

"The fairies, they told me about him. They didn't know what really happened to you. Maybe it doesn't matter. I just wanted you to know I'm sorry I was snappy and couldn't trust you enough to mind my own business," Sookie explained feeling the need to back-pedal, before she said something wrong again. "We can talk about it later of course. If you want."

"What exactly did they say about Ronan?" Lina demanded.

"His name was Ronan?"

Lina gave her a curt nod.

Sookie hesitated. "They… They said your brother died in the hands of your maker. I'm sorry for bringing this up, if it isn't true."

"It is true. What else?"

"Nasty things. I don't really…" Sookie stammered.

"What else Sookie?" Lina said. Now she herself was snapping at the girl, but she couldn't help it. She felt like the biggest bitch in the universe for barking at Sookie like that when the girl only meant well, but Ronan was her weakness. Eric stood rigid behind her probably sensing her tension. His arm around her waist pressured her again like a steel band making it hard to breath.

"They said it was your fault…"

"I don't care for a second whose words those are, but you will watch what you say," Eric snarled knowing damn well whose fault it really was.

Lina shook her head. "No, it was my fault. What else?"

"That you were drunk?"

"I was."

"That you gave yourself to your maker...willingly."

Lina could hear Eric's nostrils flaring, but she only snorted. "That's rich. Do you believe them?"

"I…"

Lina brushed the wet strands of her hair away from her neck and revealed the scars. "I have seen you looking at these before not really feeling comfortable enough to ask how I got them. As you can see, it's not a love bite. If I was still a fairy, do you think I would have the time to open my legs and prepare myself for Eric to take me before I was dry as a prune?"

Eric's hold only tightened. She appreciated his gesture, but did he have to make it so painful?

Sookie shook her head.

Lina closed her eyes and sighed. The feeling of lethargy was already sneaking its way into her mind and her body felt heavy as if weighed down by a ton of bricks. She wanted to go lay down face first on the bed of her cubby and feel safe to drift away to a peaceful slumber. Preferably she wouldn't wake up for a week.

Eric seemed to follow her thoughts. He nodded to Sookie, placed a hand on the small of Lina's back and started to guide her towards the stairs. Only then Lina remembered something that she had forgotten in the hassle of it all.

"Sookie, can you think of a reason three werewolves would be visiting your front yard in the middle of the night? Friends of yours?"

Sookie looked baffled. "Three werewolves? No. Definitely not friends."

"When I felt your fear today, I thought that they were the ones attacking you. Why do you think they're snooping around your woods?"

Sookie thought hard, scrunching her nose. "I don't know. I went to see Alcide a couple of times."

"You will call him tomorrow and tell him to come to visit. We will have a talk," Eric said with finality and started pushing Lina out of the room.

He guided her downstairs and much to her surprise they walked straight to her cubby. She had been ready to see him outside for a quick farewell, before she herself disappeared to the closet, but apparently he had other plans. She turned to look at him.

"You need to rest. I don't like that bruised look around your eyes," he said and opened the closet door.

"You're staying?" Lina asked carefully.

"I am."

"Well, okay. Do you trust me enough to rest next to me?"

"Yes. Shouldn't I?"

It was only a few days ago when she followed him to his home after her and Pam's little outing, just so she would know where he spent the days if she ever got desperate and needed to take care of him. She probably shouldn't tell him that.

Keeping a smile on her face she said, "Yes, of course," and turned to punch the code in. The lock clicked. The silvery latch to her cubby opened.

"Your eyes are very expressive," he said from behind her looking at all the silver she had used to adorn the vault he had built for himself. He would have to watch his step.

They descended down the steps. He took off his clothes and laid himself on the bed motioning her to join him. With pleasure, she lowered herself on top of his chest sighing contently. She laid her head against his silent heart listening to him exhale, his strong arms engulfing her.

"Can you tell me about your turning?" Eric asked her.

"Tomorrow."

She felt his erection press against her tummy. Always prepared. She smiled to her own joke and wiggled her hips feeling him twitch underneath her. Giggling like she was drunk she did it again. He fisted her hair as a punishment.

"Woman, you are not helping. You're about to pass out and I'm not into necromancy."

She calmed down feeling herself ready to surrender for the day. Waiting for death to take her she listened to his body sounds. No heartbeat, only the soothing sound of his breathing. She could hear his blood rush through his veins and that made her think about what was to come if she decided to stay with him.

"Eric?"

"Hm?"

"I worry about the moment you claim me."

She felt his hand on her head. "Do you worry about it because you're not sure that you want it or because that you don't know what is going to happen?"

"Both," she candidly admitted. "I saw when Isibil was claimed. I was there lying on the ground beaten to the pulp, because I tried to kill her mate the first time we met and Isibil protested. I know it's a sort of blood exchange."

"It is."

She raised her head so she could see his face, when she spoke to him about this. "You're going to have to drink a whole lot of blood from me. You saw how Sookie reacted. She was high as a kite. It's going to be even stronger for you."

"We'll try a little blood exchange tomorrow. Then we'll know how easy or difficult it's going to be."

She furrowed her brow a little at his carefree tone. "How can you not be even just a little apprehensive about this?"

He looked at her and pushed her head back against his chest. "I am old. If I was just a little younger with only a little less self control, you would already be mine. I wouldn't have had the strength to wait for you to finally put your head around it."

Lina wasn't sure if he really meant that to sound like she should be grateful somehow for his patience. With a herculean effort she kept her annoyance in control. They could fight the subject of who belongs to whom till eternity. And they probably would. She changed the topic.

"I am sad that our date night got ruined."

"Date night?"

"You promised to take me out. Humans usually go on dates before they marry. I have never been on one, so that's what I decided to call it. If only for the sake of some normalcy."

They were silent for a moment.

"When you were still human, were you married, Eric?" Lina asked him. She had wondered about that for a while now.

"No. I had too many favorites to pick only one bride," he answered with a straight face.

How charming. Her mate was a self-proclaimed man whore even before vampirism. But there was something about his candor that she found endearing. Refreshing. He was hardly an open book, but at least she didn't have to worry him ever trying to spare her feelings with pathetic half-truths. She could see he was still hiding things from her, but then again so was she.

He continued, "Marriage was not like it is today, as you very well know. Norse men and women married to secure peace or greater prosperity and power to their families. To marry someone for the sake of the heart was unheard of." His hand moved to play with the locks of her hair as the other one was comfortably placed under his head as he stared at the ceiling. "Things like _courtship_ and _proposals_ didn't exist. Men weren't even allowed to touch the girl they were to marry before the wedding night. We believed that poems and endearments to one's betrothed would only capture the woman in their thrall and make her a bad wife. A man professing his love was disgraceful."

She knew then that to ever convince this man of love would require not only hammering through 1000 years worth of vampire survival instinct, but also breaking down his ancestral beliefs. She might as well ask him to quit breathing.

"But we liked our weddings. It was a rite of passage we actually valued, as it was the core of our families. We married in the fall, when there was enough mead for the whole village and our long travelling visitors to feast. There was a sacred ritual that involved the exchanging of our ancestral swords as a mark of the union between two families, and after the ritual there were grand festivities that lasted for several days."

Then he looked at her with a quizzical look on his face.

"Is that what you want? To marry someday?"

She tried to keep a smile from her face, but failed. What an odd thing to ask.

"I want my dates first."

"Mm-hm. What do humans do on these dates?"

"I don't know really… Go to eat? Watch a movie?"

"Is that what you want to do?"

"No."

He didn't speak after that. She slowed her breathing and welcomed the feeling of numbness taking over her. The night wasn't over yet, but she had no energy left. She relaxed and felt herself slipping.

"I was going to take you dancing," she heard him say.

"I do like to dance," she whispered back.

Her heart felt a little fuller. The thought of falling in love with him scared her silly, but she knew it was happening. She closed her eyes and fell into heavenly oblivion.

* * *

The sun had set long ago making it safe for Lina to slowly wake up.

Soft trails of fingertips against her skin brought her back to life. Slipping past her loose dress, they swooped toward the tops of her breasts. They were mapping her, reveling in unexplored areas. She felt soft kisses behind her ear and a deep breath tickling her pleasantly. She was being pressed against a hard body, her head languidly resting on his arm. She felt the evidence of his arousal push against her backside, his hips making slow undulating movements.

First she panicked. She wasn't used to the feeling of waking up with someone there beside her. She tensed trying to quickly put her sluggish thoughts together. His hands continued their gentle teasing around her breasts urging her to calm down. She became vaguely aware of the tingling sensation deep within the pit of her stomach as the darkness receded. It was Eric. Eric's soothing scent and his familiar body against her. A small smile crept on her face, when she felt energy returning her body. She felt good as new.

Upstairs three people were talking in the living room. Bill, Sookie and an unfamiliar low, very manly voice.

Eric's touching became more daring, when he noticed life returning to her. Her breathing quickened, when his thrusts against her body got more powerful. She heard him lick his lips and speak in her ear, "They are already waiting for us. And they will need to wait some more."

He pushed her nightdress away from her body, slightly ripping it in the process. She didn't care. He could go and burn her whole wardrobe is he could make her feel this good.

"You can be sure when I have you in my home at last, I won't let you out of my sight for a long time. We will enjoy each other's bodies for months, years before we think of distracting ourselves with anything else. I will be a man ravenous for what is finally mine," he whispered in her ear.

She couldn't even squirm, when his fingers tweaked her nipples and the palm of his hand roved over her breasts. His hand travelled down her taut stomach and stopped between her legs.

"Open for me."

She did what he wanted. Right now he could ask anything of her.

Tugging her pubic hair a little, his fingers started tracing her sex. She was sure his aim was to kill her with this slow teasing. She shook in need, violent spams of pleasure riding through her. He growled, when two of his fingers finally thrust inside. She bucked against him pressing more tightly against his arousal.

His fingers moved inside her trying to find one particular spot. She gasped when he caressed it, rolling his fingers over the area slowly, pleasurably until her body pulsed with electricity.

"Now that I know how it feels to bury myself in you, it is the only thing I can think of. These small and tight walls contracting around me," he murmured while slowly pushing her closer to climax.

She was positive she could come from his words alone.

Then Eric rolled on top of her. He took her lips with a raw edge kissing her with force. He was all over her, inside her mouth, on top of her body, his male scent filling her senses and his tremendous erection promising good things. Her body wept for him.

All of a sudden he stopped kissing her. He removed his fingers from her, his hand grabbed her cheeks and he stared into her eyes willing her to focus all her attention on him. His look was cavernous in its depth and intensity. She could fall in those eyes very easily.

He spoke to her again, his tone very serious. "I won't wait much longer. When we have dealt with Herveaux you'll call your grandfather and ask him for the exact number of days until I can take you."

Lina found herself nodding.

She knew he was a dominant. Her body felt cemented in place against him as if his suggestion dictated the law and she was powerless but to obey. It was very easy to fall under his rule when they were like this. Give herself to him completely. She could only think how their life was going to be. Later she probably needed to think about it. Now the thought made her quiver with need.

His lips ravaged hers with his brand of possession. All the adoration and lust for her communicated itself through his lips.

He moved down her body licking his way to her chest and scraping her skin with his fangs. He lost himself in kissing and sucking and teasing her breasts. When he reached her ribs and waist, she grabbed his hair in anticipation what was to come. His mouth ghosted near her mound and she tried to lift her hips for him. He kneeled between her legs and raised his head to look at her lying in front of him ready for everything he gave her. He smiled when he saw his own need reflected in her eyes.

"You are ready to become mine, Aislinn. Very soon," he whispered and descended his mouth on her.

If the people upstairs had been somehow unable to detect what was going on below their feet, Lina's loud moan surely brought them up to date. She screamed Eric's name without reservation, when he licked her soft and hard following her whimpers. It wasn't long before she gave in to the hot waves of pleasure climaxing hard for him.

First she didn't notice what happened, with the slight pain of Eric's fangs piercing her skin getting lost in the sensation. His fangs pierced her femoral artery as she orgasmed.

She screamed both in desire and fright, her first instinct being the want to get away from him. She twisted to shake him off. He held on to her determined to get her to calm down. When she finally allowed it to happen, she got lost in the avalanche of lust. Eric sucking her blood felt like nothing she had experienced before. The feeling of her blood feeding him was mesmerizing. His hand pushed against her body keeping it in place when he drank from her. Her own fangs throbbed from wanting to taste him.

After a while he let her push himself on the floor with her landing on top of him. She sank her fangs in his throat. His blooded flooded her mouth. It tasted of life; spicy, sweet, fresh, intoxicating. He smelled of spring and ocean air.

She heard Eric growl in her ear and felt his hand on her head keeping it place and encouraging her to drink more. Colors burst beneath her eyelids and shattered like crystals. She felt herself floating until she was caught up on a breeze of color. A warm gust pushed into her mind, trickled through the consciousness, sent a pulse of energy that wound itself around the base of her spine and across her body until every cell vibrated. It seemed to go on forever, ebbing and flowing, until it subsided like the pulling back of the tide.

She collapsed on his chest panting heavily. Something sticky stained her stomach and she grinned when she realized what it was.

"I can feel you," Eric whispered with a gruff voice.

She propped up on her elbow to look at him. "My emotions?"

He nodded.

She tried to reach for him, to feel something that he was feeling but there was only emptiness. She swallowed her disappointment.

"I can't feel yours. But I guess I don't have to. I can read that smug face all too well." She tried to convince herself not to be upset. Isibil felt Matthias. Maybe it would happen to her only after the claiming. All hope wasn't lost. "Can you smell your blood in me?"

"I can, but not enough."

She sniffed his skin and felt her stomach flutter, when she detected the scent of her blood. "Me too," she said and smiled broadly. At least she had that.

"That's surprising," he muttered back. Clearly he hadn't expected himself to be marked by her scent as well. _What a bummer_, she thought happily.

Then she rose to sit on his chest and took his face in her hands studying his eyes intently. Now signs of craziness or uncontrollable bloodthirst. Damn, it seemed she was wrong about her blood affecting him. And he was right. _Fuck_. He wouldn't let this go easily.

"I'm okay, little one," he said and smiled that smarty-pants smile of his.

"Was it hard to stop drinking?" she asked him still wondering about the possible side effects.

"Yes. But not because of your blood being somehow addictive. But don't get me wrong, it is still the best fucking thing I've ever tasted."

They rose on their feet. Eric snatched her ruined nightdress and cleaned up his mess from her belly. When he was done, he leaned in and smelled her skin.

"You're not allowed to shower for a while," he said to her with his blue eyes gleaming.

"Would you piss on my leg as well, if you could make it stream?"

They got dressed. Lina had a stash of jeans and tops hidden under the bed apparently just for occasions like this. She combed through her wild hair, but gave up quickly. She would have to soak it in conditioner to get all the tangles straightened. When they rose from the cubby they were met by two very awkward looking men and an oblivious Sookie, who greeted them with a cheerful "_Good evening_!".

"Good indeed," Lina said and smiled at her kindly.

Then she took in their visitor.

A very tall man with an impressive build stood a few meters from her. He was dressed in a casual shirt, jeans and shit kickers getup that went well with his long black hair. His skin was tan, his lips full and his eyes dark. Sookie sure knew how to pick them. That was one good-looking dog. How can something so mouthwatering smell so revolting?

"I can feel your excitement," Eric murmured in her ear followed by a strong squeeze of her arm.

"You and your ego will have to deal," she said feeling a little wicked and winked at the werewolf watching her with wide eyes. No way she would pick him over the man beside her, but she could still appreciate him from afar. Eric was allowed to go ogle every chick he liked. She wasn't one to pout in jealousy. Touching was another thing.

She passed the werewolf walking straight to the kitchen.

"Mr. Hotter than blue blazes?" she asked Sookie who followed her steps.

"Shut up," the other blond muttered. "Bill's here."

Lina got a blood bag out of the fridge and filled two cups.

"I know. But why?" she joked when she knew very well the King was listening. Eric was probably getting ready to give her a spanking, but she was too happy to care. Sookie was in desperate need of a lobotomy, if she seriously preferred that broody southern gentleman to that gorgeous specimen of a man. "So, what's the story between Mr. Blazes and you?"

"I pretended to be his date for a party, when I was looking for Bill in Mississippi," Sookie said making a sandwich, while Lina warmed the blood in the microwave.

"I bet you did a very good job at pretending."

Sookie laughed a little, but then she got serious again. "The fairies called you Persephone," she told her. "Why?"

Lina only chuckled. It was a ridiculous story made up for children, but she wasn't surprised that the zealot duo had adopted the nickname.

"That is one of my old time favorites. Like in the Greek mythology, _Persephone-_", she drawled on the word. "- is a story that my kind used for explaining my turning to younger ones and warned them to never step into this world. Little Persephone danced in the meadow of this dangerous world far far away from her home. Along came the day when the bad king of the underworld snatched her away and Persephone was no more. I don't remember my turning, but I'm sure I was more likely limping and crawling than dancing in any meadow."

They went back to the living room. She handed Eric one of the cups, but he was busy glaring at the werewolf, who was probably still trying to figure out what Lina was and where the hell had she come from.

"Move your eyes elsewhere, Herveaux."

Lina just snorted at his antics and jumped in his lap.

They started talking. Apparently the werewolves were from Mississippi. Some drifters still pissed off about Sookie and Bill killing their leader and breaking off their pack. Sookie blamed some girl Debbie and Alcide defended her. They argued and speculated, one moment throwing accusations in the air and apologizing the next. Lina was only half listening. She knew that in the end it would be she and Eric who went to finish them off. After the ass-kicking of yesterday getting rid of some pups would be like shooting fish in a barrel. She heard Eric agreeing and disagreeing and squeezing in an occasional comment but mostly the conversation was drowned out by her own thoughts. She watched as he rested his hand on her hip, fingers splayed against her skin as his thumb gently stroked her hipbone.

She thought about their relationship. She was afraid of how much she actually cared about the man. She was giving in when she had sworn she would never ever do that. She wanted to become his, but she would have to make some arrangements first. She thought of the briefcase under her bed in the cubby. It contained the information on how she could disappear from human surveillance and every possible book and database with the help of a man called Andrew Slater in Florida. He could wipe out any clue there was about her and where she had went if she took off running. She also had the information about the witch in Romania, who could take care of the rest. She had the money to pay her handsomely for protection, if she ever felt the need to escape her mate. She had safe houses in Europe and Meng in Asia. Perhaps she could make this work. Perhaps she did feel safe enough to trust him. He hadn't given her any reason not to. She brushed off her doubts and actually felt content.

Then Eric turned to look at her. That unexplainable connection again. It seemed to be drawing them together like beads on one string. It was exciting. For a brief silly moment she thought he could guess what she was thinking just by looking at her in the eye. With a quick smile she turned her head back to bickering Alcide and Bill ready for whatever they planned to do about the werewolves.


	18. Chapter 18

**CHAPTER 18**

Six days.

Six days before the Portals closed and her new life began. It was so fast, but so so long. It was enough to make her head spin.

They were sitting on Sookie's porch searching the quiet woods for any signs of movement or a flash of fur. Eric leaned against the house wall with his legs stretched out in front of him and Lina lounged between his legs, his broad chest the most comfortable bunk in the world. The night was eerie and deathly silent only filled with their light conversation. Sookie was inside watching a movie with Bill. Mr Herveaux was kindly told to go home.

Eric told Lina about his life. He told her stories about his travels, things he had seen and where he had lived. Stories about battles won and lost, monarchies rising and falling, treasons, fornications and women. Lina felt like she was wrapped in the fairytale of One Thousand and One Nights, each story surpassing the other with its wildness. He had loved his maker; shared more with him than any other in the creature in the world could with another. They had travelled the world together from here to Asia and back for 700 years and witnessed history writing itself. She listened to him in awe.

She couldn't believe how comforting it was to have him there, how grateful she was to hear stories of his long life and have him listen to hers with genuine interest. He smiled in all the right places and followed the emotional rollercoaster she went through when she dug up her old memories to surface. She had never felt so warmed by the presence of another person after the death of her brother. She had been so fucking lonely for so long.

"I remember being a very happy child. I had parents that loved me and a grandfather that adored me, lots of friends to play with and a big brother whom I could be so proud of. I used to sneak out with him and his friends on different adventures tagging along like a shadow. We went cliff diving near the waterfalls and running in the woods during the night playing hide and seek. Always after our last adventure we swore we would do something more daring the next time. Ronan always complained how I embarrassed him and how none of his friends really wanted to play with a girl. I was a short skinny thing then, like a mouse."

"You still are," Eric said amusement coloring his voice.

"Whoa. Well mister, you can take your crazy Scandinavian heights and piss off," she laughed and smacked his thigh. "Might want to look out for the ceiling as you go."

"Mm-hm. I'll just carry you with me. In my back pocket."

He was slowly braiding her hair to an intricate pattern. They weren't in a hurry to anywhere. Time seemed to have stopped letting them have a few moments of peace before all the craziness took over again. No signs of any wolves yet. Perhaps they weren't coming.

"Go on," he said urging her to continue with her story.

"Ronan underestimated my talents as a spoiled little manipulator. He just had to take me along on their stunts, so that his little sister wouldn't start crying and go tell mom like the little tattle tale she was," she told him laughing lightly. These were good memories.

"This little girl that I know doesn't run for her mother. She runs for our King whispering in his ear like a little snake… or a Siren," Eric whispered and lightly blew in her ear.

"That is very irrelevant," she said with her ears heating up. Hastily she continued, "Then we all grew up. My body started to change and I guess men would say in all the right places, but for me they were all the wrong ones. I remember being infuriated when I began to notice my male friends having more conversations with my chest than me, and how they were all suddenly very interested in swimming and wrestling so they could oh so accidentally touch my girls. I hated how my mother fussed over my hips pestering me about how they weren't growing wide enough. 'No man would ever want a woman with a boy's hips,' she used to say. She measured them every morning making me feel wonderfully inadequate.

"My brother grew tall and he started to practice swordsmanship and archery. I was so jealous of him. He actually liked the things that were expected of him. Strategizing and learning the ways of our people. He loved all that. I don't know how many fairies you have met before, but the males of our kind grow razor sharp teeth when they reach a certain age. Those teeth they use as a weapon when fighting. Of course I wanted a set of those for myself as well. You should be careful what you wish for, right?"

_Oh the irony_, she thought and licked her gums.

"I was stuck practicing pleasantries, embroidery and hosting different kind of parties. Learning how to take care of your home and raise your children. I was 22 or so. I couldn't have cared less to have a snarling little infant in my lap or a household to keep. My mother already thought I was a failure of a daughter and these lessons didn't bring us any closer. I mostly ignored her and only played music and danced when I should have been spending time meeting influential families and their sons. I ran away constantly. Sometimes alone, sometimes with my cousin Frans.

"But then my father found me an agreeable suitor. He had the same power as I, the telekinesis. Sharing the same gift is believed to improve your odds of having many children and grandchildren, so my mother thought he was heaven sent. First he started to show up for dinner at our house, then helping my father with his businesses. He brought me flowers and jewels and talked endlessly how he was so pleased to have me as his wife. He started to spend more and more time under the same roof with me making advances and pleasing my mother. I guess it doesn't come as a surprise that I hated the man and was determined to make his life miserable."

"I'm sure you were. You seem to find your way out of most situations you find unpleasant," Eric said with a more serious tone.

"I usually do," Lina laughed softly. "But our group of friends never stopped going on our little adventures even when we grew up. There were five of us; my brother, me and his three friends that were also my cousins. Two of them live with me in Paris as you already know. Frans and Claude. We thought we were unstoppable and that there had never been as courageous and outrageous group as ours. So when I learned that I was going to be married to than terrible excuse of a man and when my mother started packing up my things ready to move me into living with him, I persuaded my friends and my brother to come with me to this realm.

"Here we partied and did every possible thing that we shouldn't have. I got drunk with wine, stole jewelry from haughty old hags, seduced married men, danced my heart away at prestigious balls and lost my virginity. We enjoyed ourselves and lived our lives to the fullest. We could have had all the time in the world in here and we did. We lived here for two years before everything changed."

Eric was watching her, wary, tense as if steeling himself against what she hadn't yet confessed. He knew what was coming. This tale had no happy ending.

"Do you remember your turning?" he asked her.

"No," she sighed. "I remember only bits and pieces. It is like my mind is sheltering me from pain. I've become very good at compartmentalizing unpleasant thoughts and memories away that one night being the most painful of all. Not only did I lose my life that night, I lost my brother and one of my dear friends. I don't even want to remember it. The memory would be too heavy for me to carry."

Eric was silent.

"Well, I remember some. I remember being very happy that night. I knew we were about to return to Faery in a few days so we went to celebrate our last night together. My last night of freedom. Although, I didn't know that it wouldn't be marriage that waited for me after that night was over. It was a communion of a whole different kind."

"Where did you go?" he asked quietly.

"To King George II's youngest daughter's debutant ball."

"Do you remember what happened there?"

"I know that we were ambushed. Somebody knew we were there. I know that Áron died instantly in the hands of a vampire, but Claude and Frans teleported away. What I don't know is what happened to _me_. I wasn't fighting with them. The guys never let me near actual danger. I never learned how to teleport so I guess I hid away until the threat was gone. My brother had to come save me from somewhere. All I know is that he got us to Ireland away from the vampires, but it was there where I met my maker."

She took a moment to collect herself.

"His name was Carth. He was over a 2000 year old vampire, who longed to have a fairy as his child. He knew it was possible and he had spent ages looking for us before he saw me that night. Madness had been his only companion and _raison de jouissance _for hundreds of years. I hated him with a burning passion and directed my every bit of energy at hurting him. Both physically and mentally. I don't know if any other maker has ever had to command their child not to assassinate him in his sleep.

"He took control of everything I was. When I tried to fight him, he commanded me to lie still. If I cried he commanded me not to. Commanded me to love him and take pleasure when he fed from me. He was a terrible person. Nobody could stand him. Including him. I was not more than his pet."

Eric swore – a violent, cutting sound – and shoved to his feet suddenly. He started to pace the porch like a tiger in a cage. Fury radiated off him in waves so strong she could smell it. Lina followed him go with a look of concern on her face. She didn't know her story would affect him that way.

"Eric, calm down."

"Did he rape you?"

Lina's face went blank.

He punched a whole through the wall and cursed in an old language.

"Eric, please calm down. I'm here, aren't I? He's dead and has been for 250 years. I've been avenged, you can be sure of that. Niall took his heart out of his chest and squeezed it like a stress toy and burned the remains. He is no more."

Her words didn't seem to reach him. She rose on her feet and walked to him. His eyes were directed at the forest like he was willing for the werewolves to come so he could finally rip something in pieces.

"Look at me," she said. "I said look at me, Eric Northman."

Now with two hands she was gripping his cheeks tightly and with an effort she turned his face and drew it towards her own. At last he was looking into her eyes, but still she kept her grip on his cheeks. She pulled him closer, drawing him into her gaze until their faces met and she kissed him lightly, lingeringly on the lips.

"I'm feeling a lot better now than I've felt in a long time. Despite that my family is leaving me, I'm very happy and I feel at peace with myself. A lot of that has to do with you."

"Do you mean that?" he asked her.

She nodded to him, smiling shyly. "So now you know me. Do you still want to have me?"

He rested his hand against the side of her face and leaned in to kiss her. The touch of his mouth sent a wave of heat into her blood. She grasped the front of his shirt and melted into the kiss, opening her mouth under his and letting him inside. A moan escaped her, urgent and filled with a growing need. Hot and damp, their tongues slid together. She forced her fists to unclench from his shirt and spread over the expanse of his chest. His hard muscles shifted beneath her hands as she slowly traced the lines up the length of his upper body. He was all heat and coiled with a power that she instinctively knew was both safe and protective.

A sound of several paws hitting the ground at a fast speed broke their kiss. The wolves were here.

Lina turned to face her man before they had to go and repeated her question, "Do you still want to have me Eric?"

"More than anything in my life."

She smiled at him broadly before winking at him with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "So let's go kill these wolves and let's be quick about it."

The puppies wouldn't know what hit them.

They took off with vampire speed and met the wolves half way. They stood before them watching as nine wolves snarled at them eyes hungry with revenge. Lina hoped they were ready to die for their vendetta. She hoped their dead pack master and his bitch were enough reason to throw their own lives away. She almost felt sorry for the dogs.

"You can still leave in peace," Eric's low voice echoed in the forest. "We know what you've lost in Mississippi. We know you want to take revenge on somebody. But we won't spare you all the same."

A shiver of excitement run through Lina in response to his tone. Her eyes flicked to him. The man not only looked gorgeous, but his commanding presence exuded both authority and sex appeal. He was all lean, tensile strength with a solid chest that made her want to stretch against him like a cat in the sun.

Lucky for her and her growing bloodlust the wolves chose otherwise and attacked.

The fighting felt like foreplay. Lina didn't even use her power against them. It would have made it almost too easy. She wanted to feel every blow against her body and every scratch of their nails. It did nothing but excited her inflaming her senses and arousal. She threw herself at them like a savage hitting and tearing everything she got her hands in with her eyes gleaming with fire. Every time the wolves tried to overpower her with three against one, she came out snarling furiously at her attackers with bared fangs ready to tear the suckers down into shreds for threatening them.

She looked at her mate who was standing away from her surrounded by the havoc. Wolves attacked him at all sides, but he finished them off with quick blows or snapped their necks in midair. He made fighting seem so easy and clean. His movement was fluid and every one of his hits was calculated and forceful enough to crack their bones. His talent lived up to his reputation. She wondered if she was sick somehow, but it was the most arousing sight she had ever seen.

When the last wolf dropped on the ground in front of her and phased back into a man she sighed in relief. Blood was smeared all over her face and her clothes were ripped. After the messiest kill for a long time, she looked wild - bloody macabre thing from the swamp wild. Her chest was barely covered from where the wolves had clawed her. Any wounds there might have been were already closed and her blood mixed with the doggy smell of the wolf blood. She stared at her favorite jeans that had taken most hit. There were only a few particles of cloth keeping them together.

She felt Eric's gaze on her. He stood a few meters away covered in wolf blood just like she was. His chest heaved with heavy breathing. His shirt was ripped from him. There was nothing left but the moonlight on his skin. He had ridded himself of his jeans and stood before her naked as the day he was born.

His body pulled her to him like a magnet. Without a second thought, she closed the distance between them and swiftly attacked his lips. Her mouth devoured his moving urgently against him. She released his lips only to move to his neck licking and tasting his skin. She marveled at the salty rich taste that was feeding her hunger. Her whole body pressed into his and her hands ran down his back learning every muscle and old scar. She mewled in pleasure when her body rubbed against his erection.

She felt his hands on her barely clad body. She was kissing and forcibly sucking her way down to his collarbone, when she felt the rest of her shirt and jeans rip. She felt the wind against her naked skin. Cold hands moved down to her bare buttocks and reached the apex of her thighs. Her legs almost gave out, when two long fingers parted her lower lips and softly caressed her. When they reached her entrance, she clashed against his chest quivering with need.

"Eric," she sighed begging for his touch and fighting the small tremors than ran down her spine.

He slipped his fingers inside her moving them slowly in and out of her, testing and stretching her.

"You're ready for me," she heard him say.

A surge of excitement rushed through her and she had to lock her knees to stay upright. Before she could protest loudly the fingers left her wetness. He drew his hands away and moved them to pressure her bare hips.

She darted a quick glance on him, her blood swimming with heat at the sight of his raw, lust filled expression, and burning eyes. She didn't dare to look away. His gaze had the intensity of a nuclear weapon.

Eric's hands hoisted her up and lowered her onto his erection, slowly easing her onto him.

He watched her pupils dilate when inch by inch he stretched her further. Her legs hugged his hips and her muscles gripped his length almost painfully. Her mouth opened with the shock of pleasure. When she couldn't take it anymore she collapsed against his chest and let out an earsplitting scream that echoed in the forest her body trembling uncontrollably. Above her, Eric's breath sawed through the air, his restraint cording his muscles. He felt her wonder, her skyrocketing lust battling his own. He pressed his other arm on her back and eased her down some more determined to feel himself all the way inside her. She welcomed him. He shuddered at the feeling of her small opening giving room for his considerable length until he filled her entirely. She felt too good.

Eric nuzzled her neck waiting for her with fast crumbling control. Lina felt the pressure of his grip deep in her bones as Eric fought the urge to lift her and slam her down again.

Panting with the effort Lina pressed her mouth in his ear, "You're right where you belong."

He swallowed. "This is going to be hard and fast. I'll give you gentle sometime," he said to her with a strained voice. "But this will be me fucking you."

Her legs tangled around his hip, when he shoved them both roughly against a large boulder.

Then he started to move.

Keeping her firmly pressed in place he almost pulled out before pushing back admiring the sight of their joining. With long slow strokes he experimented the feeling of sliding into her heat before he gradually picked up the pace. His lips captured hers in a kiss. It was passionate, needy and full of bite reflecting their long arrested lust and longing. Intense pleasure rode through her and she grabbed his hair to hold on, when his slow deep thrusts quickly turned into something else. He gave her no mercy, when he finally let go of his restraint. His hands fisted her hair pulling her head back so he could watch her face as he took her harder than anyone before him.

Lina pushed against his hips each thrust reaching deeper than the last. He fired her blood. It was exactly what she needed. He truly owned her, and her body already gave into him shuddering terribly after a long wait to be in his arms. It felt so right. She sank into the sensations, unafraid, tunneling her hands into his hair to hold him close. He violently took her body, her heart, and her soul. In return he gave himself to her in every way he knew how. She could see it written in his eyes. He saw only her.

She arched her back from the wall of stone and pushed him backwards until they fell rolling on the ground dirtying their naked bodies in mud. She kissed his lips loving the familiar taste of them as Eric positioned himself on top of her grabbing her thigh with a feral grip pulling her hard to him for a deeper access, caressing her sweet spot. She stared at him deep in his eyes when she felt her pleasure peaking.

"You look so fucking beautiful coming with my cock buried deep inside you," he said to her pinning her to the ground. "The most beautiful woman I've seen in my life is mine. _Min för evigt_."

He growled as he felt the pressure building in her and moved his hips in time with her convulsions. Tension spooled inside her, a thread pulled too tight and when it erupted she screamed in total abandon writhing against him. As she bucked and trashed against his hold, his fangs sank deep into her neck.

She couldn't see or hear anymore. The heat of her climax burned her and tingled all over her body. The feeling of him feeding from her made her lose herself into the sea of lust. She wouldn't need anything else anymore. There was only him. Him giving her pleasure. Him taking her body and heart as his own. Him taking care of her. Him needing her.

His name spilled from her lips again and again. Her nails dug deep into his skin leaving small crescent shaped marks. She milked him and pulled him with her over the edge.

Eric stiffened, his thrusts growing uneven before he released with force inside her. He held her hips to him coming harder than ever in his existence. His fangs dislodged from her neck, when he lifted his head and roared terrifyingly to the sky. She could feel him pulsate for a long time before he collapsed on top her with his whole weight.

He didn't move for a long time. Only breathing steadily in and out, he buried his face in her neck.

Lina couldn't lift a finger if her life depended on it. Her mind was fuzzy, no able to form one coherent thought. She pressed butterfly kisses on his forehead.

She felt him shift a little, slipping out of her. The evidence of his possession trickled down her thigh. A delicious soreness between her legs was about to make itself known. Her bones had turned into mush and her skin prickled pleasantly. She nudged him a few times wanting him to lift his head to look at her. She had something important to say. Something she couldn't hold inside her for any longer.

"I'm falling in love with you."

She knew she was cruel for saying that to him, knowing that he wouldn't be able to respond in kind. He didn't have to. His actions always spoke louder than his words. And he couldn't hide the look of adoration in his eyes even if he tried.

"I know," he whispered and hid his face back in her hair.

* * *

Standing in the kitchen Sookie flinched when the front door was flung open. In walked a muddy, bloody Lina with a quirky smile on her face. Totally naked. Her hair was tangled in knots hanging in front of her bare breasts.

"Lina what…" Sookie started to say, but her sentence was cut short.

Lina only winked at her, walked straight into the bathroom, slammed the door shut and started the shower. Bill's eyes bugged out and Sookie fought the urge of kicking him.

After the ridiculously happy looking fairy, another decidedly naked vampire walked in with a shit-eating grin on his face. He stopped in the kitchen doorway and stretched his muscles.

"Good evening. Your Majesty, Sookie."

Sookie kept her eyes on the wall. She saw him swagger over like he was drunk on his own good looks and lean against the kitchen wall. Bill cleared his throat.

"Eric maybe you want to find something to wear before you report me about the werewolves," he muttered, looking quite disoriented.

"Why? Do you feel uncomfortable looking at my naked body?" Eric asked. "Or was it the sight of my woman's body that has you so… ill at ease?"

"Shut up, Eric," Sookie said. "You can leave now."

"Not for another six days."

Eric grinned even more widely. He could feel his mate's amusement. He planned to join her very soon. "Sookie could you be a dear and find me something…"

Lina's emotions stopped him from finishing his question. A moment ago she was still feeling blissful and happy like she should. He could feel her enjoy the warm water washing away the mud off her skin. Small irritation when she possibly noticed it sticking to her hair.

Now her happiness had turned into a growing feeling of confusion. Then shock. Then fear.

He heard the lock of the bathroom door fall into place. A flash of panic ran down his spine, when he heard her whimper and he didn't know the reason. He zipped to the bathroom door and tried the lock. It didn't give in.

"What is it?"

For a moment he only heard the rushing water and her quick breathing. But then her clear voice rang, "No, I'm good. Everything's ok. Go get us some clothes."

Her emotions were in an uproar. Fear dominating the rest.

"Open the door, Aislinn," he said and grabbed the door handle.

"It's okay. Really. I'm in the shower, I'll be out in a second. Don't worry," she answered. The shakiness of her voice scared him.

"I can feel your panic."

"It's nothing... Go get the clothes and I'll come out," she said, her words coming out in a hurry.

"Open the fucking door!" he yelled.

"No. Don't come in, don't! I'm okay… Go get the-"

He felt a flash of sharp pain and heard a small thump as something fell on the floor. Not a second passed as he gripped the handle and pulled the door off its hinges throwing it against the wall. What he saw on the bathroom floor made his blood run cold. Lina was sitting in the corner holding her stomach, hiding her face from him. A puddle of blood underneath her colored the floor crimson.

* * *

**_Min för evigt_ = Mine forever**


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: Well hello Season 6 and wonderful Billith.**

**This is the biggest chapter yet. It is also the absolutely _weirdest_ chapter yet, so brace yourselves. Some of you may not like the subject, but I like to take risks. Mainstreaming is for pussies ;) The chapter takes off with Lina's POV after they came back to Sookie's house. Thank you for reading and your reviews! They're golden!**

* * *

**CHAPTER 19**

Lina was floating in the seventh heaven, drugged in the post orgasmic afterglow. Her eyes felt heavy and she was pretty sure she had a stupid grin plastered on her face when she walked through the front door of Sookie's house with Eric following close behind her. She couldn't help herself. She felt like screaming and bouncing and hugging herself with glee. Her eyes caught Sookie and Bill in the kitchen watching her with a shocked look on their faces. She couldn't blame them. She was naked, covered in blood and grime, and smiling like a serial killer on happy pills. It definitely wasn't the most socially appropriate look on a woman. Hiding her slight embarrassment behind a smirk she winked at the dumbfounded duo and headed straight to the bathroom and closed the door behind her. Eric would know to join her if he wanted. She had to get the dirt off her body.

She turned the water to scolding hot and stepped inside the shower letting the hot water wash over her blood stained body. She tried her best to avoid the mirror knowing very well what kind of shebeast might be staring back at her, but one glimpse at her reflection was enough to stun her and not for the reason she thought.

Her skin had always looked sun kissed even after her turning, but it had also looked dead. Bronzed but hollow, thin as paper. Now staring at the mirror she thought it seemed almost translucent. Her eyes were bright and seemed bluer. Her smile had her face glowing with happiness and health. Despite all the dirt covering her body like scales she looked more alive than she had in centuries.

Other than that, she was the Mud woman. Mud was sticking to every inch of her body and it was sprinkled all over her curls that matted into dreadlocks of knots and goo. It was a hair nightmare. She placed her hands on the top of her head and groaned internally. Pondering the pros and cons of just cutting it off and be done with it she grabbed the shampoo bottle and poured half of its contents in.

She lathered her hair and smoothened out the tangles with her fingers. She listened to her man do what he did best, pestering Sookie and Bill in the kitchen. Body cream washed off the repulsive stains. It felt sinfully good. But as she bent down to wash her feet she noticed something strange. The showering water rinsed her body and mixed with something bright red on the floor before disappearing down the drain. She thought she had already got all the wolf blood off her skin. Confused she turned around under the spray of water. The blood was still there, dripping down to the floor staining it. She stepped out the shower and sniffed.

It was hers. She was bleeding.

Frantically she searched for a wound. She didn't feel any pain, not even a smallest sting, which of course wouldn't have made any more sense. Her wounds only bled for a few short seconds before healing. Turning her legs from side to side she looked down to see a small stream of blood trickle down the inside of her thigh and pool on the floor. There was no wound. Only the blood and it came from between her thighs.

She froze.

Had Eric been that rough with her? Yes. If she was human she would probably be recovering from a broken hip, but for her life she couldn't remember feeling anything but pleasure. She would've remembered the pain if there was some, wouldn't she? She took a piece of toilet paper to clean the blood off and stared at the red stain eyes wide. The bleeding didn't stop, only tickled her on its way down her thigh.

Lina panicked.

She squeezed her eyes shut and let out a helpless little sound. A tinge of fear crept into her mind - how would she get it to stop? Why wasn't it stopping? Why was this happening to her?

_Eric_. He read her emotions.

She flicked her gaze to the lock on the door and snapped it shut. She put a hand over her mouth to control her panicked breathing. He would know if something wasn't right and she didn't want him to worry. Hopefully it would be over soon. It could vanish as quickly as it came. More than anything she didn't want Eric to see her like this, a trembling mess of a woman. She wasn't the one to cry or the one to complain about anything. If life slapped her hard, she got up and slapped back. But now she was afraid. She could only think of his reaction. Men and bleeding from lady parts didn't mix well. This she remembered like yesterday. A teenager Frans was staring at her with eyes full of horror one day when they were swimming by the waterfalls in Faery. It had been the first time it happened and she had been unprepared. The four men had only taken a step backwards and stared at her. Even her brother hadn't wanted to touch her or help her when she didn't know what was going on. She had thought she was dying and she had spent the rest of the day crying because of the absolute mortification.

She didn't feel much better now. She grabbed the sink for support, when she tried to think of a single plausible reason for this craziness. Or course Eric came for her. She heard him move behind the door. Feeling ashamed and insecure she wished he would just go away. This time she didn't want any audience for her embarrassment.

"What is it?" he asked.

Swallowing the lump the size of volleyball in her throat she answered, "No, I'm good. Everything's ok. Go get us some clothes." She tried to inject a breezy "_it'll be fine_" tone in her voice.

"Open the door, Aislinn," he said and grabbed the door handle. Silently she begged him not to break it. It only fed her panic.

Getting more paper she tried to clean herself up and leaned against the bathroom wall. Bloody tears prickled her eyes as she fought to keep her voice steady. Even so, she couldn't have sounded more strangled if he had his hands around her throat.

"It's okay. Really. I'm in the shower. I'll be out in a second. Don't worry."

"I can feel your panic." She could see him testing the door. She held it back with her power, just in case. _Go away Eric please_…

"It's nothing... Go get the clothes and I'll come out," she said. She didn't cry, but there were tears in her voice. It was that catch when she started to get emotional, but was still holding back the floodgates. He wouldn't believe her for a second. And he didn't.

"Open the fucking door!" his voice bellowed. She watched as the door shook from the force of his fist hitting the wood.

"No. Don't come in, don't! I'm okay… Go get the-"

A flash of sharp pain like a knife sinking into her stomach dropped her on the ground and stole her breath. Pain seared through her midriff and she doubled over her body holding her stomach for her dear life. She felt tears falling down her cheeks, when her fear peaked. A loud crash sounded from the door. Instinctively she turned her face away for him. She felt helpless as a wounded animal.

"Aislinn…" She heard fear in his voice. It only made her cry some more. He couldn't help her.

Eric crouched down beside her and tried to grab her chin. She covered her face in her hands, shaking her head, trembling and mumbling, "Please, don't touch me. Please."

Of course he didn't listen. When did he ever? His hand grabbed her by the hair as he forced her to look at him. She saw panic settling in his eyes when he took in her bloody tears.

"What happened? Did you hurt yourself?" he demanded.

She couldn't answer him. The pain was too much. Fear was crippling her. It was a hand in her stomach reaching for every organ and squeezing them. It pulled down at her dead heart until she felt it drop. She gasped loudly, mouth open, not getting enough oxygen.

"Little one, tell me," he said and tried to remove her hands from her stomach, but she wouldn't let go. She felt like she would fall apart if she let go now. "Shhh… breathe. I'm here. I'm going to help. Let me see."

Finally she got the words out, "It hurts. I don't know what's happening." More tears fell from her eyes.

"You're bleeding."

She nodded and closed her eyes in shame. She felt his hands on her body, looking for the wound he wouldn't find. He touched the skin of her legs riding his hands up and down.

"It's not there," she whispered.

He pried her hands off her stomach but didn't find anything there either. The pain came from the inside.

"Where then? Tell me so I can help!" he yelled.

She turned her head away not wanting to see his reaction. "Down… there."

She sensed him go rigid. His hands travelled up to between her thighs. "Here? Did I… Did I do this to you? Did I hurt you?"

She shook her head timidly. "You didn't."

"Do you usually have these? Do you have this type of womanly things?"

"No."

"Then why-"

"I don't know!" she sobbed pushing him away from her. She curled up on the floor trying to hide as much of her body as she could while her stomach cramped sharply enough for her to cry out. "Eric, please."

He leaned over her and whispered in her ear. "You have nothing to be ashamed of. Do you hear me?"

She bit her lip and nodded. She felt like she was that teenager all over again. Just as helpless and afraid.

"Will you let me take care of you?"

When she nodded again, Eric stood up and took Lina's bathrobe that hung from the wall. With some effort he put it around her covering her naked body and lifted her up. She whimpered and hid her tear stricken face in his neck. Sookie and Bill would be there and see her like this. She tried to look as small as possible digging her nails in his shoulders, silently gasping for air.

As if he read her mind, she heard Eric pass an order, "Compton, out of my house. Sookie, get me some clothes and a phone. Any clothes will do." They were out of the bathroom and heading upstairs. Sookie followed them with a scared look on her face.

"I've got something of Jason's upstairs. What is happening to her? Is… she okay?" Sookie asked trying to look around Eric's shoulders to see her cousin. The blood on Lina's face made her gulp. "Lina, are you hurt?"

"I don't know," she whispered back.

"Now, Sookie," Eric growled.

He took her to her room and sat on the bed placing her back tight against his chest.

"Breathe with me."

She followed him take a deep breath, his chest expanding and dropping slowly and she tried to mimic him without hiccupping and gasping out of breath. After a few minutes she stopped trembling, but the flames burning her insides didn't cool down. Eric licked her face trying to clean away the tears. His hand rubbed her stomach in circles. She held on to him like a vice.

"It hurts so much. I don't know what happening to me," she said, her voice growing shrill.

"Shhh… Stay calm."

Sookie peeked inside. "I have the clothes, Eric."

"Thank you," he said and turned his head to whisper in Lina's ear. "I'm going to leave you alone for a moment. You will keep yourself calm. Can you do that for me?"

She nodded.

"That's very good," he said, lifted her to the bed and left her alone.

She curled up to a ball and focused on her breathing. Her thoughts were running a mile a minute when she thought if this pain would eventually kill her or what would happen if she bled to death. Her limbs felt weak and blood pounded in her ears. After what felt like a lifetime she heard Eric coming back, but he wasn't alone.

"Well, what do you have here?" an old squeaky voice asked. Lina raised her head.

At the door stood a tiny female with a blue doctor's suit on and a surgeon's hat with a flowery print upon her head. In her hand she carried a large bag. Lina couldn't tell what she was. A dwarf, a goblin, a human or a hybrid? She had never seen the likes of her and judging by the way the woman was openly staring at her, she had never seen the likes of Lina.

Lina's body tensed as she watched the doctor take slow steps towards her. She dropped her bag on the floor with a rattle. The bag seemed to full of metal instruments and Lina decided none of those was getting near her. She rose up on her knees with some difficulty, readied herself to back away. The old woman's eyes brightened when she spotted her ears sticking out through her wet hair. "A fairy."

Her eyes had the same glint as Lina had seen on many others before her. Gnawing curiosity, hunger to learn more about her. This kind of people never left her alone. They prodded and harassed her until she was forced to retaliate. With her eyes following the doctor's every movement Lina let her nearer. Her tiny hand touched her face, examining her skin. She hated the probing hands, but she tried to be a good sport and stay still.

The doctor lifted Lina's lip to see her fangs up close. "But a vampire. You seem to have hit the jackpot, Northman."

"I have," Eric said from the door.

The doctor leaned forward and sniffed her neck.

"But how can you stay in control near her blood like this is a mystery. She has a very sweet scent… and the most peculiar glow under her skin," she stated.

Lina was slowly losing her patience. When the doctor's hands started to massage her sensitive ears and when she seemed to be in no hurry to ask what was really wrong with her, Lina jerked away and crouched on the bed with the kind of murder in her eyes that usually sent people running. The science hour was over.

"Stay the fuck away from me."

The woman showed no fear when Lina snarled at her baring her fangs. Rather, she looked bored, which only managed to further infuriate the female vampire.

"Vampire, I'm only trying to help you," her weary voice explained. She tried to reach for her again, but Lina backed away.

"I don't care what kind of a doctor you think you are, but you will take your hands away from me before they come off."

The woman had the gall to laugh at her.

"I'll only warn you once," Lina snarled.

"You seem to fit each other well," the woman said to Eric who was watching the two from the door keeping a respectful distance. He was dressed in a blue sweater and basketball shorts. On any other occasion, Lina would've thought it was funny. The way he was glaring at her showed that he was not pleased with her behavior. Well, she was not pleased with him bringing charlatans in this house.

The doctor put her hand on her tiny chest and introduced herself. "I'm Dr. Ludwig."

She offered Lina her hand waiting for her to take it. She only looked at it suspiciously.

"Her name is Aislinn," Eric said to the doctor and then to her, "You will let her to have a look at you."

Lina didn't move. She would rather take the pain than lie down like a lab rat so the little woman could satisfy her curiosity. She kept her hostile posture flicking her eyes from Eric to the doctor.

"Retract your fangs," Eric's voice had gone down a register, warning her. She was too angry and too afraid to comply.

"Alright then." Eric pounced off the wall and grabbed her by the neck. She backed away to the floor and tried to shake off his grip snarling at him furiously. Her used up energy was nothing against his strength. He bared his own fangs and grabbed her by the cheeks bringing her face to his.

"Calm. The. Fuck. Down." he growled at her.

She let out a whimper when he lifted her like a rag doll and placed her on his lap lying on the bed. His arms kept her hands restrained. She felt his cool breath in her ear.

"Continue," he told the doctor.

_Traitor_, she thought and bit her tongue to keep herself from lashing out.

Dr. Ludwig looked at the blood trails on her leg and felt her skin. "I have never seen a creature like you before. Too few fairies have the courage to live in this realm anymore," she explained and undid the knot of her bathrobe to bare her stomach. "The pain is here, yes?"

Lina slowly nodded. The woman started to massage her skin pressing at different spots and observing her reactions when she alternated the pressure. She moved on to her lower abdomen and pressed hard.

_Pain pain pain_.

"MOTHERFUCKER," Lina screamed and trashed against Eric's hold. "IT HURTS. IT FUCKING HURTS!"

"Control your wildcat or I won't help," Dr. Ludwig said to Eric and put her hand flat against Lina's stomach to hold her still.

"Look at me, little one," Eric said to her bringing her closer to him. "Shh.. look at me."

He pushed the hair away from her face and kissed her silencing all the wails and sobs. He demanded her attention by nibbling her lips persuading her to let him in. Her chin trembled and she shut her eyes focusing on his lips and his touch when the doctor started pressing her again. His kiss was tender, but all consuming. He knew what he was doing. She let herself melt against his chest. It was scary how well he knew her already. He knew exactly what buttons to push, how to touch her and say the right things she needed to hear. She was grateful to him for being there. For being where he belonged. She felt that little tug in her chest - the one that produced butterflies and caused your heart to burst.

Lina almost forgot that the doctor was still in the room with them until she spoke again.

"I have a vague idea what happened to her. Her bleeding has stopped and I'd expect the pain to disappear after a while. You can feed her your blood now, Northman, to speed it up."

Eric broke away their kiss and smirked. Oh, he liked this way of healing her. Lina let out a weak giggle when he snapped his fangs down and winked at her. He lifted his wrist to his mouth watching intently as Lina's eyes glazed over at the scent of his blood. His mate latched to the wound like a starved little child, her fangs sinking deep into him. Eric let out a strangled groan and raised her body up until she was seated more comfortably over his crotch. His other hand went back to rubbing her stomach circling it and covertly pressing her to him.

"Fucking vampires," Dr. Ludwig muttered and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Know that this is going straight to my bill."

"What do you think it is? Could it be harmful to her?" Eric breathed out keeping his eyes on his mate feeding off of him. He felt her hunger forcing the pain to slowly subside. She sucked on the wound greedily and let out sweet sounding little moans. She was doing a fine job distracting him.

"No. I think it's more likely associated with your mating. Her body recognizes you and reacted to it. Now that your blood will settle into her bloodstream it should help the transition. You haven't claimed her?" Dr. Ludwig asked him casually following their interaction with slight disgust.

"No, not yet."

"You have fed her your blood before and you have had sex with her?"

"Yes," he said. "Ok, _raring_, that's enough for now."

He took hold of Lina's throat and softly removed her mouth from his wrist. The wound closed up, but he let her lick his hand and fingers like a kitten.

"I assume her stomach pain is gone now."

"I would think so," he said. Lina didn't seem to be following their conversation anymore. She squirmed against his lap knowing very well what it did to him. When she took two of his fingers in her hot little mouth and sucked he started wishing for the healer to hurry the fuck up.

"How old is she?" Dr. Ludwig asked.

"256 years old. She was turned around her 22 or 24 birthday."

Eric wound his hand in Lina's hair and pulled her closer to him, keeping her in place while the doctor was still there. He chuckled when he saw her pouting. He was relieved that she was now closer to her normal self.

"That is very close to fairies' child bearing age."

"I guess it is."

"You do know that she can bear your children? That a stomach pain like this could mean she's pregnant?"

Lina tensed.

The question worked like cold water snapping her out of the blood haze. Her mouth opened, but no words came out. Eric grew rigid under her, the smirk dying on his lips.

"There's a baby?" his low voice asked.

Spiraling close to panic Lina just stared, her eyes seeing nothing, the pain in her stomach all but forgotten. The room felt sucked out of oxygen.

She knew this. She knew it could happen. She knew it so well. So, why was she feeling like she was drowning?

Of course she wasn't pregnant. She couldn't be with so little time. That would be absurd. The doctor was wrong.

_A baby_.

She wasn't ready. She… She didn't want it. She didn't want her child to live in this world. It hurt to realize that. She couldn't be a mother to a child when she didn't know how to take care of her. Or him. How to protect her child and herself at the same time. The little baby would be taken away from her. Just like everything else she loved in her life. She felt tears burning her eyes again.

"No vampire, she's not pregnant, but I think her body is changing. Readying her," Dr. Ludwig said, pleased that it finally dawned on them to start actually listening to her. "Why it hurt her like that, I don't know. It could be because of her unusual bloodlines. It could be because you haven't still fully claimed her like you should have. Your guess is as good as mine."

Lina didn't know what to feel. Was it relief? An inexplicable sadness was choking her. She needed air.

Everything was happening so fast. In the matter of days her world had turned upside down. She was experiencing feelings that she thought were forever gone for her. She had somebody she could lean on when everyone else deserted her. His blood ran in her veins, changing her body. She could smell him on her skin. He haunted her every waking thought. She could have a family with him. She wouldn't ever be alone again.

Lina pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes until she saw nothing but sparkles.

Eric was silent.

"It's rare, but it can happen. But if the pain is gone now, I wouldn't expect it to return. She's seems to be back to normal. I'm done here," Dr. Ludwig said and turned to collect her things. Before walking out of the door she called out over her shoulder, "Like usual, I'll expect a payment by the end of the week."

Then the two were alone.

Lina watched Eric withdraw his hand that had just been comfortably placed on her tummy. She sensed the strange distance growing between them and she was scared to think of a reason. He placed his hands on the bed. Suddenly she felt unwelcomed to sit on his lap and shifted until she was sitting beside him, not touching anymore.

"The pain is gone?" he asked her.

Lina nodded. She was afraid to look in his eyes to find something she might not like there.

"Good."

He got up and walked to her closet. He grabbed one of her suitcases lying in the corner and started rummaging. He picked out a couple of colorful dresses from her closet, jeans and tops. She watched him dive in her underwear drawer throwing pieces of lace and satin in the open suitcase. No one wanted to address the elephant in the room.

"Get up. We're going."

"Where?" she whispered. She had never felt this vulnerable. She needed him to hug her, but he was too busy trying not to break anything when he went through her personal things, looking for things she might need where they were headed.

"Pam is waiting outside with the car," was the only explanation she got.

She lowered her gaze to the bloodstained bathrobe that hung around her shoulders loosely. She wrapped it around her more tightly hiding her body. "I would like to stay if it's okay."

"I need to take care of business. We'll stay the night at Fangtasia."

"You can go."

Finally he turned around. She watched shutters descend on his face again like a transparent shield allowing her to look at him without actually seeing him.

"What?" he spat out.

Sitting a little straighter she forced herself to look at him in the eye. "I would like to stay here. You can go. I don't mind."

"What is this?"

He stalked closer to her.

"I'd like to be alone for a while, if it's ok," she repeated softly.

"You're pushing me away," he accused her, his face completely emotionless. He stood right in front of her his gaze penetrating, his eyes now the coldest shade of blue.

_And what the fuck did he think he was doing?_ Her head was like a hornets nest buzzing with thoughts… and fears. She needed space, if only for this night. She wasn't trying to be difficult. She just didn't feel like leaving with him and watching him work while she sat in the corner waiting for him to come back to her, to make her feel better again.

"No, Eric. I'm just overwhelmed. I need time to think."

He crossed his arms, not allowing her any breathing room. "You shouldn't be alone. The hurting could come back and you need me there."

"I feel ok. As normal as I can feel."

"All the same. You're leaving with me."

"Eric, please," she whispered.

"Eric, let the woman breathe."

Pam stood at the door way with her hip cocked to the side watching the two lovers have their little spat. Lina looked at her gratefully. She didn't have the energy for this.

Eric kept his eyes on her and didn't acknowledge his child's presence. He raised his eyebrow waiting for Lina to start dressing herself before he did it for her.

"Master," Pam spoke again trying to persuade him to let it go. "_Bara kolla på henne_. _Vill du faktiskt gräla med kvinnan just nu?"_

Sookie appeared from behind Pam smiling timidly at Lina. "I'll stay with her while she sleeps. In case she starts hurting again. If that's you want, Lina?"

"Yeah. That would be nice," she said answering her smile.

Eric frowned. She silently begged for him to understand. After a very tense moment, he put his hand behind her neck and leaned down to kiss her forehead.

"I'll come for you tomorrow. At eight. Wear the dress."

Then he made a quick turn and walked pass Sookie and Pam disappearing from her view. Pam gave her a crooked smile and went after him. She heard her laugh when they got downstairs, "What the fuck are you wearing?"

The door closed behind them. After a few more seconds she heard the motor start and they drove away. Lina released the breath she was holding.

"Thank you," she whispered to Sookie and got up. The girl was smiling at her encouragingly like the sweetheart she was, but there was worry in her eyes. "Do you really want to sleep next to me? Because you don't have to."

"I think you could use a little company. But I don't plan to cuddle just so you know."

"You're the best," she said with a little grin finding its way back on her lips.

She cleaned herself and threw on her sleepwear, a t-shirt and flannel shorts. Comfy and homey. Sookie went to her room and came back carrying her pillow and her cover, 100 % ready for a vampire sleepover. She had the rocking bunny rabbit pajamas back on that made Lina smile. They went downstairs and climbed down into her cubby. Later, when they were lying in next to each other staring at the ceiling and waiting for dream or death to take them, Lina whispered to Sookie breaking the heavy silence.

"Sookie, what is your idea of living happily ever after?"

Sookie smiled. "Ok, let's see. Me and my beautiful - still very fictional - man sitting on the porch swing outside surrounded by our grandchildren. Or me, on my couch, surrounded by bunch of cats. Whichever fate is coming for me," she said and laughed.

"So you believe in fate and destiny?"

"Yeah."

Lina hadn't believed in fate. She had firmly believed that life was what she made of it, that life would react on her actions and that her final destination had nothing to do with destiny but instead had everything to do with the choices she made along the way. Actions had consequences and consequences were for her to live with. Now she was slowly beginning to doubt that.

Tomorrow she would fix whatever went wrong with Eric.

"So, what's your happily ever after?" Sookie asked.

"I don't know yet. But I think I'm close to finding out," she told her and turned facing the wall. "The combination is 78856 if you want to get out during the day. Good night, sleep tight, don't let this broody vampire bite."

* * *

"Tell me about her," Pam said when they were speeding down the highway to Shreveport. Eric was driving, passing cars from left and right testing the engine of her Alfa Romeo. He was wrapped in his own thoughts, barely noticing her sitting next to him. He didn't react to her words, but she knew he was listening. She decided to lighten the dark mood. "I want to know more about the woman that makes you that clingy."

"Why?" he grunted.

"She's going to become my sister soon. I would like to know what to expect."

Eric thrummed his fingers against the steering wheel keeping his eyes locked on the road. He was considering what to tell her, what he felt comfortable sharing. After a few moments of silence he spoke, "Aislinn is difficult. It takes time to get near her."

"I think she's nice," she said to him. She thought of the seductive smile of the fairy, her come-hither eyes and the way she carried herself with outmost self-confidence. Oh, she was very nice indeed.

"Like a woman making money in show business should be if she has any idea what she's doing. Her smiles earn her fortunes," he said. "Aislinn is hiding herself behind layers of secrets, teasing winks and humor. She's strong, but vulnerable. Loyal, but very independent. She's sweet, determined and guarded, all at once. Full of contradictions. And she's a bit bratty, but that might be because of her young age."

"She's older than me."

"And what does that say about you, my child?" he turned to look at her with a grin on his face.

"Touché. So how does the fairy feel about you?" she asked candidly and watched a small frown cross his face as Eric turned his gaze back on the road. "Or is this a forbidden subject? I'm only making small talk."

"No, you're not. You're being your nosy self. I can tolerate it now, because her presence in my life will change some things that concern you too."

Pam turned her head away biting back jealousy that reared its ugly head. She hadn't thought about it like that before. She was so used to him running around after that harebrained Stackhouse woman that she hadn't thought of Lina being anything different. That she would steal something from her. Of course she would. Pam and Eric had one hundred years of companionship behind them. She wasn't ready to give him up. Not yet.

She felt his hand on her cheek and leaned into it.

"There's no need for that and you know it. I'm not replacing, Pamela, I'm adding," he said to her with a softer voice.

"So?" she urged him to continue and change the subject. She could deal with it later. Maybe she could take her new friend shopping. Some female to female bonding time.

"She feels very deeply. She feels gratitude and wonder. I guess she hasn't had anybody so determined to be near her and to take care of her in a while. She's used to being on her own and dealing with problems by herself," he said.

"Does she trust you?" she prodded.

Eric slowly shook his head. "Not completely. Not in things that matter the most. It told you she was difficult. She doesn't tell me if she's hurting or feeling insecure. She snarls and gives flippant answers trying to steer the conversation elsewhere. I like that she refuses to show any weakness. I also like her courage and backbone, but I want her to start counting on me," he admitted. "I have this… _need_ to have her depend on me and me alone. It would bring me pleasure to know that I am the one she turns to in every single aspect of her life. Danger, pleasure or comfort. "

"I would give it time," Pam stated.

"And I will."

Speaking about his mate was harder than Eric had thought. Their relationship was multifaceted. Few could ever begin to understand their dynamics. His need to feel her unconditional respect, devotion and trust was strong, but they weren't there yet. He could feel that she wanted him and the life that he was offering, but she still hadn't given herself to him. She wasn't _his_ in the way he wanted.

"What happened in England, Eric?" Pam asked carefully.

His eyes shot to hers and narrowed. "Why do you ask?"

"I only want to help you."

He ran his hand over his face. Such a human reaction. His expression was dark and melancholic. The line of his mouth thin with unspoken distress. That made it difficult for Pam not to reach out, to offer some type of comfort, but her instincts told her to stay where she was and not to touch him right now.

"I tried to kill her right before she was turned," his silent voice told her. It was as bad as she had predicted. "Her blood and body were given to me as a gift by the King of England. First time I saw her she was running away from us who had come for her and her friends, away from me. Her body was so petite and luring, and her face was said to be beautiful. I wanted her. I followed her to her hiding place. I cornered her into a small room and stood behind a locked door. I threatened her and waited for her to surrender. I thought her fear was delicious.

"She never did surrender. She threw herself out of a glass window to get away from me. I sent her running wounded and vulnerable to the hands of her maker that abused her for years," he said.

Neither of them said anything. There was nothing to say. It wasn't his fault? How could he have known? Those were useless questions and comfort.

"There are no words to this. This would devastate her," he whispered.

"Are you planning to tell her?" she asked him.

"It's not that simple."

"She could forgive you. You're her mate," Pam insisted.

"If I told her this, she wouldn't stay with me. She would ask her grandfather to let her follow her family to Faery. She could live with them until her end and possibly be content, but she would always be treated like a pariah. Fairies are not known for forgiveness and sympathy. They are in many ways more vindictive than us. It is not her place anymore and she's finally coming to grips with that fact. She's happier now than she has been for a long time. I can help her find her place in this world and I can give her a good life. I will not ruin her happiness just to clear my conscience."

"Is it a secret you can get away with?"

Eric nodded. "She doesn't remember that night."

"Is it a secret you can live with?"

"I don't know. There's no choice." He turned his stern eyes to her once again. "Now that you know this, do you remember my earlier command?"

"Yes," she nodded.

"It's still in effect. You will not speak a word of this to her or ever imply anything to that direction."

"I won't."

"The truth is that she's gotten under my skin. I don't think I'll ever be able to shed her. Even if she wanted it."

Then he closed up. He didn't look at her again even after they reached Fangtasia and sought cover for the day. Pam knew that he would be back to himself by the next evening. After all, he had a hot date.

* * *

**_Bara kolla på henne_. _Vill du faktiskt gräla med kvinnan just nu?_ = Just look at her. Do you really want to fight with the woman right now?  
**


	20. Chapter 20

**CHAPTER 20**

Lina opened her eyes. She drew a quick ragged breath and arched her back away from the bed, away from the nightmare she once again had. She turned her face to the pillow and muffled a sob. Nothing in the dream made sense, but it was the familiar faces she saw that brought her down. Her maker and her brother. Blood and fear. All the stress, all the bloodshed and big changes were affecting her. Her life needed balance and maybe, just maybe then she could rest again in peace.

The faster she moved on from her old life, the faster she could be able to shed their ghosts.

_Eric_.

She would be with him this whole night and the thought made her happier. She drew her focus to him. Solely to him.

Lina sat up and looked around her cubby slightly disoriented. Sookie was gone. She probably got bored at some point watching over her lifeless, motionless body. No wonder, it was probably as exciting as watching grass grow. Climbing out of her cubby Lina found her cousin sitting in the backyard with a disheveled looking Jason. They were sitting on the garden chairs, facing the forest and bickering. Jason had a spooked look on his face and he kept jumping in his seat as if fearing for the Grim Reaper to come calling. Sookie had a shotgun in her hands and she looked like she meant business. To Lina, it seemed like today's drama had already begun without her.

"What's up?" she asked and sat down on the ground in front of the two and stretched her legs.

Sookie looked at Jason, who suddenly found something in the ground very interesting. He was frowning and his cheeks were blushing red.

"Jason's afraid he's going to turn into a werepanther," Sookie said and snorted. "I'm waiting for him to explode into a big ball of fur."

Lina cocked an eyebrow. "A what now?"

"A werewolf but a panther," Sookie explained and waved for Jason to continue.

Lina had a feeling this would be good. Just the kind of crazy ass drama to pull her thoughts from the dreams before. Kudos to the never boring Stackhouse siblings.

"A big black ugly thing, that's a werepanther. I have this crawling feeling," Jason muttered to the grass underneath his feet. Only now Lina noticed that his hands were tied to the chair with two pairs of cuffs. He actually believed this.

Lina couldn't stop the laughter. It was too silly. "You just woke up today with a crawling feeling that you might turn into a giant cat?"

Sookie joined her laughter, giggling into her hands covering her mouth.

Jason threw Lina the stink eye. "It's not fucking funny. I was at Hot Shot, the place I told you about. Turns out they're all these fucking werepanthers and they hold me hostage there for several days. Thank you by the way for noticing. I bet you all were really worried. They bit me. Several fucking times. Wanting me to become one of them and join their freak circus or impregnate their women to make werepanther kittens or something."

"Rawr, Jason," Lina said.

"Like I said, it's not fucking funny!" he bellowed.

"Yes it is," Sookie sang. "I'm sorry Jason. I know that you are scared, but this werepanther thing is probably the craziest thing you have ever come up with. And we both know how insane it was when you took off to join Steve Newlin at some point during last year."

"So what's the shotgun for?" Lina asked.

"So Sookie can shoot me if I attack. It's for her protection," Jason said with a serious face. Sookie just shrugged. "So are you going to help me or not? Laughing at me when I'm most vulnerable is not cool. Actually fuck off, the both of you. Don't you have any vampire business to be at?"

"You're acting kind of _catty_… Perhaps there's something into it," Lina teased and rose on her feet. She pressed her hand on Jason's shoulder. "I have to get to the shower. Welcome to the jungle, tiger."

"It's a PANTHER, you crazy vampire lady," he called after her, as she walked back to the house chuckling.

* * *

Lina relished the feeling of the sprinkling water hitting her skin. She bathed herself in bath oils and put on a hair mask while doing her nails. It was fun getting ready to go on her date with Eric. It had been a while since the last time she had really taken time to make herself feel pretty. She had missed this. She put on some good old jazz music and swayed her hips humming along with the tune of John Coltraine's saxophone. Only the small remains of her blood from last night disturbed her sacred feminine ritual. She looked at the dried blood stains on the floor like they offended her. Scrunching her nose she took the shower head and cleaned them off.

There. It was like the incident never happened.

By the time she was ready her skin smelled of jasmine and her hair was curled and hung freely reaching her midback. She stood in front of a mirror smoothing the fabric of her purple Herve Leger dress. The woman in the mirror looked confident and she had some new fire in herself. The old Lina with her insecurities and rash ideas about running away from her problems was buried deep. The clock was only half past seven. A half an hour left. Getting a little impatient she walked to the window of her room and back trying to catch the sound of a car approaching. She wanted to see his face and smell the calming but arousing scent of his skin. She wanted to know if they would be okay after the last night's scare. She made a promise to herself not to fight with him anymore. Whatever it was that happened.

Not able to sit still she thought about calling Isibil to share a few girly giggles, but her phone was missing. It seemed that coming back buck naked after the fight with the werewolves hadn't been very bright. She had left the phone in the woods along with the remains of her jeans, where it was hidden in her back pocket. It was possibly lying on the ground covered by mud and moss as dead as a doornail. Oh well.

Finally after twenty excited and agitated minutes she heard the hum of Eric's car as it drove to the front of the house. Stepping into her heels she grabbed her jacket and practically ran to the front door and stepped outside to meet him.

Her dead heart wanted to give a leap at the sight of him. Her memory didn't do him justice. He was leaning against the Corvette talking on the phone kicking the dirt underneath his feet. Waiting for him to notice her, she took a long look over him like any woman with a strong desire for her man would. Up until this moment she hadn't allowed herself that privilege. Yes, she had been close and very intimately with him many times before, but this was the first night she felt as though she really had the permission to get lost in his charm. He was wearing his well-fitting gray slacks and a dark button down shirt open at the collar to reveal the column of his throat. She could see the teasing concave dip of his chest. He had rolled up the sleeves to show his strong arms. He spoke with a serious, subdued tone that sent a pleasurable shudder through her body. He was gorgeous. She would make him hers.

She hoped he would notice this change in her. She wasn't holding back anymore.

She cast him a demure smile when he finally caught her standing on the porch admiring him with her head tilted to the side. His gaze followed her as she walked to the car and stopped right in front of him. She wasn't sure if it was because she knew she looked quite good and smelled nice tonight or if it was because of her determination to make the previous day's misunderstanding disappear, but feeling bold she molded herself against him pressing a light kiss on his sternum, not caring about intruding his phone call. The caller would have to find time to call him back.

With his eyes travelling from her eyes to her mouth, he brought his hand to her cheek.

"_Bien sûr. Je vais vous appeler quand je sais plus. Bon nuit_," he spoke and ended the call. No later did he trace the path from her jaw to her neck and pull her to him. His kiss was soft, tentative, as if he still worried about her. She wanted to put those worries behind them.

"How come I find you here outside whispering French on the phone, _mon cœur?_" Lina asked and brought her hands gently on both sides on his face.

He didn't answer her, only stole another kiss from her lips. There was no hint of the distance between them she had felt the day before. The air wasn't cleared, but she detected a new need in him. Tonight he was bringing her closer. Pulling her to him like he too was making up for the possible damage last night caused. When he released her, his eyes were slightly narrowed and his lips were drawn into a pensive line. She made it her mission to turn it into a smile.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her solemnly, searching her eyes and hopefully finding something pleasing there.

"Excited." She let her smile widen hoping it would be infectious. Then she caught the meaningful curve of his eyebrow. Yes, she knew what he meant. "I'm feeling perfectly fine. Back to normal me. No hints of the pain anymore." She stepped away from him and let her eyes run down his tall frame. "You look very handsome, Mr. Northman."

"Why thank you Miss. Collett-Brigant," he said with a smooth voice and opened the passenger side door. "Get your butt inside."

She climbed in and sat on the soft leather seat. Smiling to herself she took a deep breath of the air thick with his unique scent and subdued cologne. Eric got to the driver's seat and started the car. Only when they were a long away from the Stackhouse home, he spoke again.

"How was your day?"

"Mm, mellow. I took time pampering and primping myself. It felt good."

"I like the results," he said as he brought his hand over her bare knee. It seemed like today he only needed to brush her skin and she caught on fire. Her desire to feel him close to her again was painfully obvious. She was almost needy. It was something so foreign to her. She wondered if he noticed it.

"I could feel that you were happy about something. I could feel you laughing," he continued.

She knew if it was only a few days ago the thought of him living her emotions and keeping track of her moods would have bothered her. Old Lina would have bolted or raged about privacy and manically tried to find a way to block him. This brand new Lina saw that he only wanted to look after her, when he wasn't near. It made her feel safe.

Remembering all the werepanther craziness from earlier, she bit her lip to fight another burst of giggles. "It was Jason Stackhouse. He…" She shook her head dismissively. "It's a long story. Stupid really."

"And when you woke up?" he said and turned to face her, looking at her expectantly.

_Her dreams_.

He had felt her sadness and the fleeting misery. She hoped he hadn't thought that it was about him and the news they heard last night. That wouldn't do any good.

"It's not what you think."

"What am I thinking, Aislinn?"

"That it was about what happened yesterday. It wasn't. I'm already ok with… the news." She might be ok with the fact that her body had undergone a sudden change as a reaction to her mate, but she still didn't have enough courage to talk about it. She lowered her eyes to her hands on her lap and told him, "I'm having bad dreams."

"Like the ones we had about each other? Not that those were bad in any way."

"Well, not that intense. They are dreams of my turning, my maker, that night I told you about. I have had them once in a while for as long as I can remember. Now they are only more colorful and more lifelike and I'm thinking it's because of the big changes that are about to happen in my life."

The little caresses of his hand on her knee stopped.

"I thought you don't remember what happened that night," he said with a small edge to his voice.

Lina looked at him surprised. She was taken aback for a moment by his tone. He sounded harsh. She felt a strange need to defend herself, as if he had accused her of lying.

"I don't remember, Eric. It's just flashes of what happened. I remember something, but it's like I can't hold on to the memory tight enough. Sometimes it's just pictures, other times it's only bright colors. At times it's only feelings coursing through me like echoes of what I felt back then. Sometimes I hear myself talking, breathing and my heart is beating. I hear the violins that played that night or Frans' words when he spoke to me. Sometimes I remember touches and sometimes I swear could feel the embroidery of my dress against my skin once again. Today I felt how I got my scars. I'm sorry if I scared you. I can't control it."

He seemed to contemplate that for a moment. His whole demeanor had changed again as though she had hit an invisible trigger in him that she had failed to see before. She looked at his tightened jaw and his thoughtful expression.

"Tell me what you remembered today," he requested.

"There's not much to tell. I just saw my maker standing in the field where he turned me. Then I saw Ronan taking care of a large wound in my thigh. He was wrapping a piece of cloth around it to stop it from bleeding. I remembered running through some woods. It didn't make much sense. It was just flashes and feelings. Like an abstract movie without a plot, only showing you chilling obscure things for shock value."

"Will you promise to tell me about these dreams? Every time you have them, I'd like to know. I want to be there with you."

"They're just dreams, Eric. Not a big deal and they really can't hurt me," she said, trying to convince him. She refused to be treated like a mental patient because of the nightmares. They were her problem, and she was sure they would disappear again after a while.

He was looking at her closely. She hated when she couldn't tell what he was thinking. She was left sitting there, surprised and confused, going through the conversation in her head to see what had ticked him off.

All of a sudden, he took a turn with the car to the left. The wheels of the Corvette screeched as he steered them right off the main street to a deserted road. Lina watched with her eyes wide as he dropped the speed and drove along the road with no buildings or much else than trees in sight. Her thoughts were running wild. It looked like a road where only the mafia would drive to drop off dead bodies and bury their secrets to. Not exactly what she had in mind for their date night. When the main street disappeared from the rear view mirror he stopped the car. They were only surrounded by the forest nightlife and it was very silent. Lina glanced at Eric with a cautious look on her face, when he leaned back in his seat and pushed the seat towards the back of the car making room between him and the steering wheel. Then he motioned to her by curving his fingers.

"Come here."

His legs were splayed open and he wanted her to climb over to his side. She hesitated. She probably had an impressive deer in the headlights imitation going on with her wide eyes and tight lips, because then he smiled. Perhaps he thought she needed some reassurance. Perhaps she did.

"Little one, come here."

Feeling a little nervous but deadly curious she kicked off her heels and lifted her dress a little higher so she could crawl over the gear box. But before she did, she noticed him take a deep breath and she wondered why that was. She settled herself over his hips, straddling him in the tight space. He wound his arms around her waist as he pulled her nearer until she was pressed against his chest feeling his breath on her lips. She tried to gauge his mood, but once again she had trouble pinpointing it. Staring into his eyes like a scared little rabbit Lina opened her mouth to ask what was wrong. He silenced her with his lips.

This wasn't the tentative kiss from earlier. This was a kiss that sent flames to her core and stripped her from any anxiety. His lips worked her quickly and passionately to a point where she forgot every thought about this strange situation. She relaxed in his arms and moaned against his lips. He took advantage of her parted mouth and let his tongue slide inside touching and stroking hers.

His hands found the back of her thighs, rubbing her skin and playing with the hem of her dress slowly riding it higher and higher. Just when she let go and rose a little higher herself to persuade him to push her dress the whole way up, he backed down. He released her lips and brought her head back to study her face.

She looked at him innocently, blinking her eyes and smiling. His sensual mouth was only inches from her own. He drew one of his hands to her chin and moved his thumb over her lower lip.

"You look very beautiful tonight," he told her softly, but his eyes glinted with some new emotion. An emotion she couldn't decipher.

"Really?" she asked with a flirty undertone.

"Really."

He rested his hand on the back of her neck and the other one found its place on the curve of her backside. She felt him tracing the lines of her panties through the dress. He followed the small rise of lace to her side where the lace was tied together with a silk bow. A small smile formed on his lips as he felt the bow and understood that by tugging it she would be left bare for him. Her thighs tightened as she fought to keep still. She felt herself grow achingly aroused as his fingers ghosted around her hips.

"I was talking to my friend in France. Have you given it any thought if there still are some things in your apartment in Paris that you might want to keep?" he asked.

"Oh," she gasped, surprised that he would bring out a subject like that during a moment like this. She swallowed and tried to form a coherent thought that didn't involve his hand on her hip squeezing her. Her apartment. All of her things. Moving. _Right_. "No, I haven't. I haven't had the time… or I didn't think that I would actually need to move all of my belongings here. I guess I always thought I'd keep the apartment. As a safe haven of sorts," she joked, but stopped smiling when she saw that he was serious. _What was he doing asking questions like this right now?_ "You really think I should move all of my things here in Shreveport?"

"Yes, you should. I want you to feel at home here. We will be staying in Shreveport at least a couple of decades. You want to stay close to your cousin, don't you?"

She nodded slowly. Playing with the lapels of his shirt she said, "I will arrange a flight after the Portals close. I'll go to have a look at the apartment."

It was a nice penthouse apartment in the urban area of Paris that had offered her security and peaceful rest. All the material things she owned were there. Photographs, posters of Mirage, videos and other sweet mementos. She had some nice memories of that place. She would be sad to let go of it. She liked Paris. She still wasn't sure how she felt about moving to the States. Perhaps she should still keep it as her second home and as something that belonged to her only.

"No need. I'm having your belongings packed and sent to my house. Even the bigger items. I'd like for you to make a list of things you want to keep and what is ok to toss. I'll make room in the house for you," he told her and watched his word sink in.

The smile on Lina's lips vanished when she understood the meaning behind his words. An unpleasant chill rode down her spine. _No fucking way_.

"You had my apartment checked?" she asked him trying to keep her voice level when she felt the anger rising. She dropped her hands from him and tried to scoot back. He held onto her more tightly.

"I did." His eyes weren't cold but they were relentless. He studied her calmly and waited for her to react and lash out.

"You broke into my apartment without the courtesy of even telling me?"

"I don't think of it that way," he said as if that would make it all right.

"Then please tell me what way should I think of it?! Tell me in what way it is okay to go to my _home_-"

He lifted a finger on her lips, silencing her again. Clenching her teeth she tried to pull herself from his grasp, but he didn't let go. He pulled her hard against his chest and took a hold of her chin. She tried to shake it off but only earned herself a sharp pinch on her ass.

She yelped and bucked against him.

"How dare you?!" she shrieked. "Who the fuck do you think you are?"

She pushed against his chest and slapped his shoulder. It wasn't doing her any good. He only sat there, looking at her fighting him with a calm look on his face. He was waiting for her to get it out of her system. He took in her blows and kept her close with her cheek against his collarbone. She silently cursed him time and time again.

"Reel it in," he whispered in her ear.

_Breathe. _

_You promised yourself. No fighting. _

_Breathe_.

She stilled and closed her eyes. Biting her tooth she made an effort to calm down.

"You're not making this easy for me, Eric. I'm trying, I really am," she said giving up the struggle.

His palm slid back down to her bare thigh. When he felt her relax again he began to stroke her. One hand brushed the side of her thigh and the other one wound itself in her curled hair. He gently pulled her head back and demanded her to look at him. But his eyes weren't gentle. There was a shade of silent anger, seriousness and the worst of all she saw disappointment. She startled, thinking of a reason why he might feel that way about her. Disappointment.

With a voice so calm that it was almost threatening, he spoke to her, "You need to stop thinking about me as your little fling, Aislinn."

It shocked her.

"I'm not," she whispered. She wasn't. He had changed in her eyes. She was giving into him.

"Aren't you?"

Her mouth opened, but no words came out. Was she? She thought about her apartment again. She thought about her work and her life in France. She always had a plan B ready if she ever needed one against him.

_Against him._

She thought about how he was probably making arrangements for their new life. Making room for her in it and what had she done?

Nothing.

She hadn't contacted her dance company about the upcoming change. She hadn't told her few friends about him. She hadn't thought about her apartment or the life she would have with him. Had she been purposely avoiding it?

Her face fell. She couldn't answer him. His eyes were locked in hers and he stared at her mercilessly. She got the impression he was generating an answer from what he saw there. Her silence spoke volumes.

"I'm committed to you and to what we have. All I'm asking is for you to do the same," his smooth voice continued.

His words felt like a slap in the face. Hadn't she made it clear enough how she felt? Had she still been hiding herself? Maybe she had been scared. Maybe he was right. Lina tried to turn her face away in shame, but he wouldn't have it.

"What happened yesterday can't ever happen again. You locking yourself away from me, when you feel fear and panic, will not ever happen again, Aislinn. Whatever the danger is, you will let me help you, no questions asked. You will let me near you. Do you understand?"

Her chest tightened. Her heart felt like spiraling into a deep abyss. He was right. She had kept him away, even when she had really needed him. She had tried to push him away, she saw that now. Why was she doing it? She had hurt him and now he was hurting her. Her anger was gone. All she felt was disappointment in herself that was reflected in his eyes. Shattering the warmth and confidence from within, quickly the feeling of security diminished - wherein shame and confusion filled in their absence.

"I do. I'm so sorry," she whispered, not brave enough to speak out loud. She felt tears burning her eyes.

"You're stubborn and when you're scared, it's a dangerous combination," he said and finally his voice softened. She clung to it like her lifeline.

"Do you know when I knew I had to keep you?" he asked her.

She shook her head.

His hand unwound itself from her locks and smoothed her hair. He tenderly traced her bottom lip with a finger, his eyes fixated on the way it quivered. He stroked the hill of her cheek, pressing down until he could feel the bone underneath, then he slid up her nose, across her forehead and back down again to feel the tremor in her chin. She swallowed hard. She watched him look at the slight movement in her throat as she did so, and then he wrapped his fingers around her neck to feel it.

"No, you thought I wanted you for your blood the second we met. When you came to see me the first night in Fangtasia you were in control. Your eyes were so cold as if you had already decided to hate me whatever I said or did. My body wanted you, but I could have easily left you be."

She knew it to be true.

"It was when I saw you the second time we met near the shifter's bar, when I knew there was something in you that I wanted. You were nervous, shifting your weight from left to right. You were trying to uphold the fire and hostility that I already knew you had in you from the day before. But you couldn't. I saw the quick falter in your carefully practiced pose. For a quick passing moment your vulnerability was written on your face. It was a shadow in your eyes. It was intriguing. I saw that you are a woman of high contrast. Hard and soft. Cold and warm.

"It isn't this hardcore mask you have on that I want. It's what is underneath that pulls me to you. I need to see the softness that you have in you. Don't you dare to hide it from me ever again."

"Why are you doing this?" she begged to know with a hushed voice. She was desperate for him. She felt the tears fall. The traitorous, irrational tears of her confusion and her want to make it right. To make it all right between them once again. She wanted him to forgive her for being afraid.

"Shh… there's no need for those," he whispered.

He leaned in and brushed his cheek against hers. Slowly, his hand on her thigh persuaded her to rise up on her knees by tugging her skin and she obeyed. Like a puppet on a string, her legs parted until they are splayed wide open on both sides of his, as far as the leather seat of his car allowed. Bowing her head she watched as he slid his hand up and down her inner thigh, carefully avoiding reaching too far between her legs. Shivers followed. She watched mesmerized as he gently opened the zipper of her dress from the side. It slid down and he pushed one of the shoulder straps down with it, revealing the purple laced cup of her bra. Her eyes felt heavy while desire pooled in her stomach.

"Do you trust me to take care of you and do what I know is best for you?" he asked.

His fingers brushed against the lace, against her nipple. Lina let out a deep breath and quivered. She gave in to his spell, falling prey to the perfect seduction. She felt the wetness between her thighs and she could smell her own scent fill the little space. He was slowly driving her near insanity. His other hands stopped to rest against the inside of her thigh and her bottom. So close but still so far from where she wanted him to touch her.

"Tell me," he demanded, like a dog with a bone, and rubbed his thumb against her skin over the femoral artery. She felt the heat of his eyes on her.

Biting her lip from either crying or screaming in need she steeled her resolve to answer him. "I trust you."

He took his hand away from her thigh and she whimpered in loss. He used his both hands to curl his fingers under the hem of her dress and lifted it up. Lina pressed her hands against his shoulders when another flash of lust rode through her. She felt exposed, even when he kept his eyes locked on her face and only watched her lick and gnaw her bottom lip.

"Whatever the fight is between us, will you stay with me and fix it or will you ignore me and run away?" he asked her.

She blinked her lust clouded eyes and swore to him, "I will stay."

Eric smiled at her. He brought his hand behind her back and snapped her bra open. It dropped between them. Finally he lowered his gaze.

"You beautiful, beautiful woman," he whispered and brought his mouth to her bare chest.

Lina moaned and pressed herself against him more tightly, greedy for every touch. He licked and kissed her breasts, tugging them with his blunt teeth. His hands touched her backside and caressed her. Only he had a way of making her feel so good, so bad and so wonderful at the same time.

He kissed and sucked his way up her neck. Finally she felt his hand over her lace covered mound. She cried out in relief. He petted her though the fabric as she felt herself flood with moisture. Reaching for her hair again he took a hold of her. Looking at her with his heavy blue eyes he brought the fingers from her mound on her lips. She parted her mouth and he pushed them inside.

"You're so wet that you drenched my fingers thought your panties. Do you have any idea how hard that makes me?" he rasped as she licked his fingers.

Then he opened the two little bows on the side of her panties and tossed them aside returning his strong fingers to the warmth between her legs. Lina's eyes fluttered and she panted hard with her arousal. Nothing else existed in this world but him. He had to know that. He pushed two fingers inside her and watched her expression grow delirious.

"I'm taking you to my home tonight. We will make it your home too."

Squeezing her eyes shut she waited for his firm fingers to retreat so they would give her that delicious high when they slid back into her greedy demanding body. When they did, she lost control. Her orgasm threw her screaming in his ear and she felt more tears drop on her cheeks. She felt his fangs sink into her shoulder, prologing her climax.

She heard the clink of his belt buckle and the scrape of his zipper. His tongue lapped the skin on her shoulder as she moved to undo his shirt. She couldn't get enough of him when he bared his body to her. She kissed his muscled chest and rubbed his arms. He was truly a work of art.

His hands were on her hips. "Let me inside."

She sat up on his now bare thighs, reaching between them and guided him in. He sucked in a deep breath as she lowered herself onto his tip. Raising her eyes, she kept them locked to his blue ones as he sank deep inside her, inch after delicious inch.

She leaned forward to whisper in his ear, "When you're inside me, nothing else exists. I want you to know that."

Then she started to move. She kissed him with fervour, not willing to ever let go of him. After some time her sensual movements weren't enough for him. Closing her eyes, she gripped his bulging biceps as he lifted his hips to thrust into her time and time again, searching for that elusive edge. He licked and kissed her skin wildly crooning in her ear and touching her clit. She came with the force of an exploding star and took him with her. He shuddered hard and released inside her.

After such an emotional high, she slugged against his chest unwilling to move. She couldn't stop the tears flowing. Now they were mostly happy tears. He was touching her hair tenderly, letting her have a moment of quietness.

"I only want you to want me like I want you," he confessed after some time.

"I do," she told him.

That was the exact moment he stole her heart. All she knew was that she needed him like the blood in her veins and like the air in her lungs.

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**A/N: ****I had trouble sitting still while writing this chapter. Eric showed his talent as a wicked manipulator for the first time in this story and Lina fell victim to it. I felt so emotionally abused by myself by the time I finished it.** It was one royal mindfuck of a chapter to write. I eagerly look forward to your reactions :)

**The next few chapters will be a bit lighter. Thanks for reading! You rock.**


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: "A few" words:**

**I don't know what's happening in TB lately. I haven't had the time to watch the last five episodes of the show yet, but from what I've heard I have to say I'm very disappointed. And seriously pissed off. They are ruining Eric and it makes me want to tear my house down, cry and wail. Now that this story is on again, I can go watch the episodes and seethe in peace. **

**But I guess something funny has come out of Season 6. Warlow's a fairy vampire? Heeehee. I laughed out loud when I heard about that particular plot reveal. I'm gonna have so much fun with that in this story, when I finally get to that point. Obviously there is going to be different "rules" to Lina and Warlow. I wrote fairies like Harris wrote them, basically more like humans than in True Blood except for the ears and the teeth. They don't turn into dust as they die and they don't have a creepy "second look" beneath the human façade that makes them look like Gollum's cousins. But let's see how it will turn out in this story when I get back to the TB storyline for Seasons 5 and 6.**

**Thank you for your reviews! I love them. They keep me in check. I know the previous chapter was one big emotional smut wreckage, but to those of you, who survived it and lived to tell me about it, thank you! Yes, Eric is being selfish and yes, he's being a grade A asshole with his controlling ways, but he doesn't always do the right thing. Not in this story. The man has got to have at least one flaw, don't you agree? This Eric screws up a lot by doing what he thinks is right or in his power, but he will face his mistakes later. I promise. My only worry in this chapter was if I was making him too much of a sap. :D And I can't stand sappy Eric. Every time I wrote something too syrupy, I gave myself a quick slap. My cheek is throbbing red. This chapter is lighter and more lovey dovey than the rest. It has more Lina's inner musings than action and drama, but it's still an important one to the story. Thank you for reading.**

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**CHAPTER 21**

Lina thought she knew dance. Every form of it. Passionate dancing, slow dancing, hot tease dancing, waltzes and tangos. Dancing out of sorrow, aggression and joy. She had seen it all. Dancing was her outlet. She danced through the highs and lows of her life, never being afraid of baring her soul on stage. Without thinking too much of it, she let her audience have a sneak peek into her emotions and into her most cherished memories conveyed through music and the art of dance. Every routine she made was personal, bound to reveal a piece of her life if the viewer paid attention. But she had never felt more naked than this night on the dance floor in the arms of this man. The two of them only had an audience of a few curious onlookers, but with Eric, dancing turned into something she hadn't experienced before.

It wasn't about how well their bodies moved to the music. It was even less about their combined talent or ambitious dance steps. Their movement was simple. It was effortless.

Eric held her hand in his. Their eye contact didn't waver. He spun her across the floor, now almost empty of any other couple. Lina guessed they gave intimidating competition. Nobody wanted to be compared to them right now and for that she found herself smiling. Just like this, looking into each other's eyes, they tried to read one another. What it was that he wanted, and what she wanted in return. They touched each other discreetly always aware of the other people around them even if no one was looking. The quick brushes of his fingers down her spine to her backside, the small touch of her hand on his neck made it feel like a wicked game. Her skin vibrated at his touch, like static or musical waves. Always subtle, but bold enough to make it feel risqué. She felt the pull between them stronger than ever. It had been excruciating to fight it and she was glad the fighting was over.

They were in a bar that was more like a club. A club themed after _film noir_, filled with men in their dark suits and women in their little black dresses. The colors of black, grey, and burgundy gave it a shadowy, if not dirty look, but everything was elegantly designed. Simplistic, but rich. The few patrons were standing by the bar leaning their work exhausted bodies on the counter or sitting on the couches near the walls with their heads bent low in conversation. Humans drank their poison from high cocktail glasses and the vampires present kept sipping their favorite flavor of TruBlood like dirty Cosmopolitans. The air was smoky and it smelled of expensive perfumes and flavored cigars. It was the kind of bar where everyone minded their own business. The music drowned all conversation offering Eric and Lina a strange illusion of seclusion in a wide open space when they finally retreated to lounge at the back of the bar.

Two glasses of TruBlood sat before them, untouched. They were brought to them by a young waitress with brown girly hair and pretty figure. She had infatuation written all over her face when her shy gaze casually swept over Eric and finally rested on Lina. She had smiled politely, blushed and fumbled a bit with her tray. _On the house_, she had said and went her way. Both vampires found themselves watching after her as she walked back to her post and then smirked at each other when they caught the other one looking. She was cute. No teasing winks, no sweating from excitement and no loitering just long enough to see if it could be something else than TruBlood they hungered after. Cute.

Lina sat beside Eric on the couch with one leg crossed over the other. She traced the seam of his slacks and dug her fingernails into the palms of her hands, while she pretended that after that dance being so close to him, breathing the smell of his skin and the hint of his cologne didn't cause butterflies in her stomach. After her near meltdown in the car, this easy night was a blessing. It was what they both needed. She told him that.

"I like it here. Thank you for bringing me," she said.

Eric had his hand stretched on the backrest of the couch and he turned his head to rest it on top of hers. It was pleasant. She was sure that if she could still blush, she would've glowed scarlet throughout the night.

"I thought you might. It's nice. It's private, relaxed and sexy – all things I'd like you to feel tonight," he murmured.

"And I do." She closed her eyes for a while to feel his fingers draw invisible patterns on her shoulder. She was not the only one feeling a bit more relaxed tonight. He seemed free of any obligation, like he had left all pretenses and responsibilities behind him, if just for this night. Then it occurred to her how right she could be on that thought. Maybe they crossed an area line somewhere and she hadn't noticed. He had this aura of ease around him, which she didn't see too often and least of all in public places like this. "But what I like the most is what this place does to you. We crossed an area line a few kilometers back, didn't we?"

"Kilometers. You're in United States now, Aislinn. You should start thinking in miles, feet and inches. But yes, this is Area 1. How can you tell?"

"You smile more. You don't keep flicking your eyes from corner to corner. These little displays of affection. You remind me of a lion in its downtime, taking a little break from its day knowing that he still rules the land."

He chuckled a little at that comparison, but it was how she saw him. A beautiful, self-assured creature that was able to heat up a room with his mere presence. He demanded attention. The way he moved was almost lazy, but there was never doubt that he couldn't rip you to shreds faster than you could blink. She had never met a man so intent on making her feel comfortable, but also so very _un_comfortable at the same time. Even when he had her in his arms like this, he left her with the impending feeling of being hunted. It was exhilarating.

"Mm-hmm. Maybe. The Sheriff of the Area owns this club. Kirsch. She's a friend of mine," he said.

"Oh, is she here tonight?"

"Yes."

"What is she like?" she asked warily. They were in another vampire's turf and she wondered if her night was about to take an unpleasant turn. She tiptoed through vampire area registrations and formalities. Vampire politics was something she loathed more than the red, sewer liquid in front of her. Too much ass kissing, too much backstabbing.

"She's a bitch," sounded his curt answer.

"In a good, merciless way or in a bad, heartless way?"

His lips curved upwards. "I mean it in the most affectionate way. Kirsch is an honest sheriff. She has your back, but fuck with her and she comes after you like a bloodhound. She's opinionated, relentless and direct. Not a very good politician, but a reliable business partner."

"Sounds like a woman after my own heart," she said and was sincere with it. She had a knack for women who knew what they wanted. Kirsch sounded like one.

"She has a background not much unlike you. Aside from the obvious. Kirsch lived in Germany before coming here. In World War one, she lost her husband to the American front line. After dealing with the pain of her loss, she became angry and she found some angry, reckless friends to play with her. She began running with the cabaret crowd of Berlin. Nights of debauchery, absinthe, and reckless behavior led her into the arms of an American expatriate vampire. She followed him here in the '40s, where this vampire turned her. She's a young one, but ambitious."

Lina looked at the bar once more, now seeing the little hints around her that spoke of the owner's history. Eric leaned back on the couch with his legs outstretched and looked at her with that certain glint in his eye. "She still has a taste for show business."

"Of what kind?"

"Nightclubs and performance arts."

"Why do I get the feeling you're up to something, Northman?" she asked and narrowed her eyes.

He caught a lock of her hair between his fingers and played with it, shrugged and said, "I would like you to meet her. You might find something in common. If not, you at least got to let loose here and I got to show you off."

And she here thought he wanted to keep her veiled from anybody else. Especially from other vampires. This new revelation contradicted with that.

"Show me off, huh? Well what do you know… I thought you wanted to keep me hidden from prying eyes, like a dirty little secret. Keep me out of vampire politics and lay low for a while," she said and lifted her legs on his lap and turned towards him to study his face.

"And I thought you wanted to be my partner, not my housewife?" he countered, locking her watchful eyes with his.

A little rush of warmth coursed through her at hearing that.

"You got me there," she whispered.

He smiled and squeezed her thigh and the affection was doing twirly, tingly things around her heart. Her chest ached in a weird, pleasant way. Strange. Maybe her dead heart had a little heart orgasm. Could hearts do that? It felt like hers could.

He sure knew how to treat her and just the right things to say. It was almost miraculous how he was able to learn to read her in such short time. He seemed to have dug deeper into her mind than even she ever had and then he began the process of disarming her. He was outplaying her, plucking all of her weapons from her hands and making her feel like a toothless tiger. The surprising part was that it didn't bother her for a second.

The only thing that she was afraid of was how vulnerable it made her. It had taken a long time for her to build the stronger skin she needed in this world without her family. She wasn't always this untrusting. She was thrust into the world of kill or be killed, and she had had to change if she wanted to survive. But feeling vulnerable was the tradeoff to pay when you cared for somebody. It was a risk she would have to take.

She knew why he attracted her the way he did. He challenged her, and she challenged him. He was confident, unapologetically demanding, spontaneous and adventurous - all the things that she could ever ask in a companion. So here she was. The stubborn, combative, standoffish Miss Lina Collett was falling in love so hard she could already feel herself starting to change to meet his needs better. And she was fine that. More than fine. A genuine, wide smile crept its way on her face. She averted her eyes from him and reached for her glass to take a sip of her TruBlood. If the owner of the bar was coming to meet them, it was probably polite to try to enjoy her drinks.

_Hrrr_. TruBlood was probably the most fucked up and genius thing ever invented.

She looked at Eric, who was watching her curiously.

"What's going on in that busy mind of yours?" he asked.

She thought that for a second and wondered what she should tell him, while swirling the contents of her glass in her hand. She wanted to know more of him and now was the perfect opportunity. She was going to take advantage of that. But there were almost too many questions – _where to start? _

"Have you ever thought about us? Why we're here? Why you and me?" she asked.

She was feeling a little bit philosophic. She still had trouble in believing in destiny and she wanted to know how he felt about it.

"All the time. Have you?"

"Yes."

"And what do you think?"

"Well," she said, trying to figure out how to put her thoughts into words. "I think we complete each other in an indirect way. I mean that we don't exactly need each other like a man needs a woman, and vice versa. I don't need you to protect me and you don't need me to warm your bed at nights, if you allow me to be chauvinistic that way. But I feel there's something else we can give each other. I'm not sure yet what it could be, but I'm getting there. At first, I thought the only thing that we could ever have in common was the color of our hair and the fact that we're both arrogant enough to get ourselves killed. But maybe there's something more…" she said and quieted for a while.

She was going to say something forbidden again and he would have to fight the urge to lecture her… again. She ran her fingers over his collarbone and over his unbeating heart. Dead as hers, but she hoped it could have its own little heart orgasm too someday.

"You attract me in ways that I've never known before. You have this _joie de vivre_ that I'm slowly growing addicted to… and I'm beginning to love my addiction. You make me fell warm."

He was watching her silently - processing what she said, no doubt.

She waited for him to respond, but his face didn't give anything away. She knew she made him uncomfortable, as they were back to the unpleasant territory of speaking out emotions. She waited for him to ignore how she felt, brush it off with a terse comment or do something else entirely.

His gaze travelled from her eyes to her mouth and her lips parted by their own volition. Or his.

Just when she started to feel a bit foolish, he reached his hand behind her neck and pulled her to him.

It was a warm kiss, slow but growing. He led the way and she followed, veiling them from strangers' eyes behind the curtain of her hair. The kiss felt like an opening to what she could expect from the rest of the night. He was building it, but not letting it reach its crescendo just yet. Just before she got lost in it, he released her. She felt all tingly all over again.

He pulled away and went back to studying her, and she let him. It was moments like this when she caught him unprepared and seeing the thoughtful expression on his face again gave her a little high. It was the most endearing quality of his. His eyebrows furrowed a little, like he was trying to solve a puzzle. Indeed, it must be puzzling to act out of emotions he claimed he didn't have, she thought. Slowly his face relaxed into a smile and it was that crooked smile of his that she liked. Especially when he didn't seem to have anything sinister on his mind. Naughty things, no doubt, but the sinister ones were always bad news for her. The man was infuriatingly difficult to read, but he could kiss like a house afire and surprise her with very good things. With bad things too, just like she learned in the car. If the man thought the fight over her apartment in Paris was over, he didn't know her at all. She was just biding her time.

Little by little she was learning how he thought and reasoned, what fueled him to do things he did. But she wanted to know it all. It was like a thirst she couldn't quench. She knew they probably spent more time analyzing each other than was healthy, but she couldn't help herself. She thrived for armchair psychology.

"What do you think? About us I mean," she probed.

He placed his hand back on her thigh, rubbing it. "I expect a lot from us."

"What if you're disappointed?"

"You and I wouldn't be here, if I thought I would be," he said, airing the cruel truth of the ever pragmatist. It was mind blowing how fast he could find his way back to gains, losses and uses after a kiss like that. It was like he lost course for a while, but fought fiercely to steer himself back on it again before anyone noticed.

"Some claim their mates instantly after meeting them. You've seen it happen and I've seen it happen, but that's something I'd never do. Don't think for a second that I'm going to claim you just for the sake of believing in fate. Because I don't. It's the pleasure, the comfort and the routine of a mate that I want to experience with you. Now that I've seen you and been inside you, I'm no longer satisfied with the solitary life I've led. But you're right. We don't exactly need each other, although wants have the tendency to transform into needs, when given time. And you're right again, we do have a lot we can give each other, but what it is, I think we can only learn after a few years of living with the mating bond. Now it's enough for us to feel attracted to each other," he said and as if to make a point, he placed his hand on her inner thigh moving it up until her breath hitched.

Lina flicked her eyes to the crowd, looking if anyone saw them. Eric didn't mind. He lifted her to his lap and continued where he was. He brushed the sensitive flesh just underneath her panty line making her body tense and her mind lose all focus of what they were talking about. When he saw her squirming, he grinned in small triumph and removed his hand before their actions became blatantly inappropriate.

The man could play her like an instrument. It was very worrying.

Lina took another long swig of her TruBlood just to haul herself back to here and now by using the metallic taste of it as an effective mood killer. Finally she found some use for the product.

"So my tasty blood, my rare power and my convenient connections to the Prince of a powerful race have nothing to do with it?" she teased, as she felt her body cool off again.

"Absolutely nothing," he said, still grinning his ass off.

She lifted her eyebrows.

"What now, little one? Do you think I'm that good a liar?" he asked.

"I think you can be an excellent liar when you want to be."

He said nothing at that. They both knew it was true.

Then he continued, "I'm taking a risk by having you in my lap, just like you are taking one with me. You do have a lot of enemies and your blood can entice a certain crowd I don't mind having to deal with. But do you know what the most dangerous thing for me is?"

She shook her head.

"You. You could easily be one of the most lethal creatures I've run into."

He turned his gaze away from her and pointed at a man standing near the dance floor, drowning his sorrow in Scotch.

"Without moving from my lap, could you kill that human?" Eric asked with a low voice, not wanting to be overheard.

Lina looked at the man. His expression was distraught and he clearly was in dire need of company for a reason or the other. His shoulders were hunched in defeat. She felt sick. She didn't like where this conversation was going.

"Yes," she whispered. "By multitude of ways."

"Name one."

"Eric," she hissed in warning.

"Name one, Aislinn."

She pursed her lips and muttered, "I could twist his neck."

"And that vampire?" he spoke in her ear, as he nodded to a male vampire by the bar, talking to a woman.

Lina turned her eyes to him. The man was smiling a charming smile, and the woman was blushing at his advances. They looked happy.

"I could harm him badly," she admitted. "But I wouldn't. You know that."

"But you wouldn't," Eric said and brought a hand on her cheek. "And I know that. You're very powerful, but you use it only to protect yourself and the people you care about, and that's why I'm taking the risk. You and I both know that your power is also a threat against me if ever manage to piss you off. Your blood tastes like the sun itself and having your Prince around my little finger would feel so fucking fantastic, but that's not why I'm claiming you. Fortunately, I like being with a dangerous woman. It makes me feel a bit manlier to be able to call you mine," he smirked and made her snort.

Then his face froze back into a thoughtful mask and his voice was somber.

"All I wonder about is how perfect the timing is," he said mostly to himself.

"What do you mean?"

"You're going to have to let go of your family soon. Your grandfather, your cousins, the place you still call home."

It was true. She fought the sorrow of that statement that was threatening to creep its way back in. It was like she was standing in a house that was on fire and the only option for her was to make the jump right out of it. And Eric was standing outside, waiting to catch her when she fell. The timing couldn't have been better.

"And I had to let go of something not so long ago," he said, but left it at that.

She knew whom he spoke of. She didn't need to ask. He would talk to her about the subject when he was comfortable with it and this was hardly the place.

They fell into a comfortable silence for a while. She watched his eyes soften, but then harden back to calculative again. He had the kind of eyes that always looked like they knew a secret she had no clue about. Always a bit unpredictable. It was like looking at the sea trying to read it as the weather kept changing.

"So many secrets," she whispered out loud.

He glanced at her. "You think I have secrets from you?"

"Don't you?"

After a moment of silence, he answered. "I do."

It chilled her blood a little bit. She knew he did have his secrets, but to hear him confirm it, felt a little worse.

"Will you tell me what they are someday?" she asked.

"Yes. But not today."

She felt like shaking him, but restrained herself. "How can I trust you without knowing everything there is about you? If you're keeping some corners of you hidden, how can I know what kind of monsters you keep there?"

He looked at her without answering. Of course he couldn't answer that. Only she could. She bit her lip. No, she actually gnawed at it. This was one of the things he just wanted her to accept and she hated it.

"I'm not ready to tell them to you. At this moment, you should only get to know me and learn who I am. My secrets don't change the man I am today, Aislinn. And I will tell you them, when the time is right," he said.

Something was off, but she wasn't sure what. Nothing in Eric's face told her he was being insincere but somehow she got the feeling he was. But to bring that up wouldn't do her any good. She was already on thin ice with him in matters of trust and giving him any more thought that she still had trouble taking his words for granted wouldn't help. She did trust him. And she didn't want to start another argument trying to prove that she did. He always won those arguments leaving her feeling like a jackass. But now she just felt that he was holding something important back, not out of spite, but because he wanted to shield her from something. It was almost like he was selling her a dream house with a horrible history of death, skirting over the inconvenient fact that a mass murder happened in the living room.

"I believe you," she said burying those ugly thoughts. They would come bite her in the ass someday, but maybe she would be ready then.

"I'm sure in a few decades we will be still asking the same things: Why are we here? What are you thinking? Who are you? What have we done to each other? What will we become?" he said. "I would be worried if we didn't."

Lina took a deep breath and another slimy sip of her drink and placed the empty glass on the table. She let her gaze wander around the club, as she tried to relax again. This night felt longer than ever and it was because of the emotional tug of war she had to play with him.

Then she became conscious of a pair of eyes drilling into her from a distance. The girly waitress from earlier was sneaking glances at them, while arranging the liquor bottles behind the bar. When she noticed Lina looking, she turned her eyes away and became busy with the cash register. A lovely blush was coloring her cheeks and ears red.

"She's a little smitten," Eric said, breaking away her staring at the girl.

"Like a kitten," Lina chuckled.

"She's pretty," he said and brought his hand on her neck, rubbing it pleasantly.

"Mm-hmm. Maybe she thinks we're one of those more liberal couples that like to invite innocent little girls like her to our fun time."

"Maybe it's that promiscuous Parisienne flair you have going on."

"Ha. No."

"That promiscuous fairy flair then," he sighed.

Lina laughed.

"Possibly. We fairies take that floozy cake and enjoy every mouthful of it," she said, letting her thoughts drift to her cousins for a while. Thinking about floozy fairies made her miss Claude. Then she turned around and jabbed her finger to his chest. "And look who's talking. In Fangtasia, the first thing that hinted me of your existence was your cum running down a girl's leg. Quite disturbing, you big prude."

His grin grew devilish. "Did it entice you?"

"Well, it sure as hell didn't impress me."

"But I bet it did something to you."

"If it did, I wouldn't tell you."

"You did look a little tense sitting there in front of me," he leered and continued the heavenly rubbing of her neck that was making her the opposite of tense every passing second. "I wonder what you thought of me then."

"I thought you were cute," she quipped and smiled at his incredulous look.

"_Cute_?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Nothing else?"

"Should there be?"

"Yes."

"You're begging for it, aren't you?" she asked, her smile treading dangerously close to the smirking territory.

"I am."

"Well, to console your vulnerable ego, I thought you were _cute_ and sexy and gorgeous and outstandingly fuckable. You Mr. Northman meet all requirements for an infuriatingly hot piece of ass. I actually had to _restrain_ my irresponsible pussy from worshipping you right then and there," she said, laying it thick with sarcasm, even if it was the absolute, mortifying truth. "But before you start congratulating yourself, I also thought you were the most arrogant, manipulative, childish bastard I'd ever met. And I still do. But I guess that is why I'm drawn to you. Women are stupid like that."

Eric was grinning at her like the village idiot.

They talked about mindless little things after that, making jabs at each other and telling stories. Right before they were getting ready to leave, they saw the door next to the bar open and a woman walked in. She was a woman with caramel colored hair and a power in stride as she walked to the bar and asked the girly waitress for something. The waitress answered her and the woman turned her focus on the customers. She searched for something in the crowd and when her eyes found Eric, she smirked. _Kirsch_, Lina presumed.

Lina stood up, and Eric followed. They watched the female sheriff approach them, not stopping to greet the other vampire patrons in her way. She was wearing everything in black, which was customary to vampires in power. He hair was curled to immaculate waves. Eric took a few steps towards the woman. Lina was glad to stand behind his back, letting them go through the formalities when Kirsch finally stood in front of them. Their exchange was cordial but short before Kirsch's attention shifted to her, forcing her to take part in their little meeting. Lina nodded to her respectfully.

"Sheriff."

The woman ran her eyes up and down Lina's figure like she was measuring her and trying to see if she would meet some secret standard of hers. Then she did the most interesting thing. She moved right in front of her, stopping to stand right before Lina's face, breathing the same air as she did. It seemed like respecting someone's personal space was not part of her usual repertoire. Especially a stranger's, like Lina.

Lina refused to get uncomfortable. This was some kind of a quirky test, but she had no idea what kind. She stood there calmly, tasting the cool air that the other vampire breathed to her face. She smelled of cinnamon and womanly musk. Her face was had hard German features and she was quite beautiful in her own stern way. She was smiling but her eyes said something else entirely. It was a little creepy. Like a mass murderer smiles before he slits the poor victims throat.

When nothing seemed to happen, Lina got bored.

"Wanna kiss?"

Kirsch cracked a smile. The woman looked to see what Eric thought about his companion speaking out to her like that. Eric looked like he approved.

"Cheeky one, but quite lovely. You always had a thing for fair beauty if I remember correctly," Kirsch said to Eric.

"You do."

"A new child of yours?"

"No," he answered, but didn't offer any other reason for why Lina was with him.

"She smells of you. And then something else entirely. Sweet. Alluring."

"Thank you," Lina said, when she got tired of the sheriff-to-sheriff dialogue. She tried her best to keep the demure smile on her face.

Kirsch stared at her for a while. Lina couldn't blame her. Everything about her screamed _different_. "Well aren't you a little mystery. But sit please. We have a lot of catching up to do."

She and Eric talked about area business, Compton and politics, but avoided the actually touchy subjects as they were out in the open like this and Lina was sitting like an outsider right next to Eric. Lina watched how he got immersed in conversation; learning the gossip and speculating. This was something he liked doing and strategizing came naturally to him. And his little schemes, she thought and smiled a little. One thing she was glad about was that from this day forward she could possibly leave the tedious politics in his hands and focus on what she loved doing. He had his business and she had hers.

Kirsch asked her what she did; business or politics, like the two of those were the only options. Lina could see why Eric liked her; she was outspoken, but tactful and went straight into important matters and left out the bullshit. _Business_, she answered and went about explaining all the whats and whys of her line of work. How she chose dancing because it was expressive, evolved with time and always offered new possibilities to entertain the viewer. How people will always be fascinated by dancing for the same reasons that they liked fireworks and loved the circus. People would want to see daring tricks, magnificent shows and talent, and her business would thrive. The world would always want to see a show and her shows were never boring.

Eric was watching her with the same expression that was on her face only a moment ago; that little knowing smile.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: The longest chapter yet. If you're already tired of my little attempt on erotica, skip the last part of the chapter. With Eric, I easily go overboard. I'm a little experimental with this story, as you might have noticed. ;) **

* * *

**CHAPTER 22**

Well before sunrise Lina and Eric pushed through the front door of the bar and exited to the parking lot. Humans and vampires were scattered around, finishing their beers or TruBloods and having a few laughs before the leaving for the night. Lina found it pleasant strolling beside her man hand in hand in the dark listening to the sound of his confident stride on the pavement. She thought about where they were going and couldn't help but feel a bit tingly all over. His home. She would actually get to see the lion's den now. How exciting... how nerve cracking.

She already knew where it was of course, but she hadn't had the nerve to peek inside the last time she was there. Her intentions then had been very different from now. Instead of checking out how he lived, her focus had been on discerning what kind of a security system he had on and how she could sneak in unnoticed. That thought seemed almost ludicrous now. She wondered if she should tell him this and if they could have a good laugh about it now that they knew each other a little better, but she decided against it. No need to reveal what kind of a homicidal bitch he was getting comfortable with. She smiled beside herself, grinning at the sweet irony of it all. Eric threw her a curious glance as he followed her to the passenger side of the car.

Before she had time to open the door and climb in she felt his hands over her hips and with a sudden jerk he pulled her back flush against him. She gasped in surprise and a laugh escaped her lips when she felt his breath tickle her right ear.

"You handled her well."

"And you sure like to keep me on my toes, good sir," she laughed as he reached for the door and opened it for her.

"Never a bad thing," Eric said, but didn't release her. He brushed her hair away from her neck and leaned in to inhale her scent. "Even the small amount of my blood in you seems to attract attention... I like that."

"You would, wouldn't you? I'm just glad it's a two way street. No one here recognizes my scent in you, that's all." But it still bugged her that she couldn't feel his emotions the way he did hers.

"You like marking me, Aislinn?"

"Well, you're not the only one who can get a little possessive when they see something they like," she teased him.

She leaned back in his embrace as he ran his nose up and down the column of her throat. Something hard was being deliberately pressed against her backside and the feel of it was doing something very naughty to her lower regions.

"Eager to get me home?" she whispered and ran her hand over his thigh.

"Mm-hm."

She turned her head to blow in his ear playfully. "Are you sure it's safe to drive like that? You might get distracted."

"Oh, I'm counting on it."

Lina turned around and gave him a wicked smile. Leaning into his neck she was about to give him a foretaste of the distraction she had in mind, when she heard something out of place.

"_Banphrionsa_."

Both vampires' heads jerked to the direction of the sound, Lina's smile dying on her lips. She would recognize that beguiling voice from anywhere.

_Princess_.

Two men were standing a couple of hundred feet away from them straight under the streetlight staring at them intently. One man's face was fixed in a wide, toothy grin that began in his eyes and went everywhere at once; the other one wore a deep scowl that looked so unfamiliar on a familiar face. Their sun-kissed skin glowed even under the artificial light, what should have left no one in doubt about what they were. Fairies. The bigger, scowling one stood with his arms crossed over his chest and paid no mind to the people watching them curiously. The shorter one leaned against the lamppost looking careless as ever, flipping a coin high in the air. It was a habit Lina knew very well.

Frans and Claude.

The shorter one, Claude, was dressed in his usual James Dean attire of a tight t-shirt and worn faded jeans, not afraid to show off his body to female and male onlookers alike. He was a six feet tall man with rippling black hair, all muscle and teasing smirks. He had a pair of brown, velour-soft eyes and a sensuous mouth with a pouty bottom lip that made women swoon at his feet piling up left and right. Pity, because no matter how much he liked to smile his Price Charming smiles and flaunt his body build of an underwear model to please the females, it was all for show. He played for the other team. Exclusively. He was gayer than the Pride parade.

But where his boy harlot of a brother left girls crying after him with disappointment, Frans was always there to console them. With an impressive build of 6"3 feet, he stood straightened to his full height with his back straight, his feet apart in that sure-footed stance that seemed to be holding the world in place. It was a posture he'd picked up after coming back to this realm in the 1950s – a distant, menacing pose, which intimidated the people he did business with and secretly broke Lina's heart. Under the bright streetlight his brown locks shone in deep, lustrous tones of mahogany partially hiding his handsome features and his hardened brown eyes. Over the years, her best friend with cute boyish looks, the boy that used to run around the woods of Faery with her, joyfully fooling around without a care in the world, had grown into a serious, quiet man. Losing Ronan and Áron to death had changed him. Losing Lina to blood thirst made him withdrawn. He had an air of threatening mystery around him that with his high cheekbones and elegant, angular features drew human women like flies. And he never batted them away.

Tonight, the look on his face made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. He was looking at her in the embrace of her mate with a stone cold stare, which made his brown eyes look almost black. For a moment she could only look at him frozen on the spot, alarmed.

Eric was watching the duo with a thoughtful expression, still holding her close to his body. He noticed her tense up, but refused to let go.

"Your cousins?" he asked.

"Yes. That's Frans and Claude," Lina whispered, feeling cold all over.

She felt like a kid with her hand caught in the cookie jar. Frans' stare was accusing her as if she was breaking some unspoken promise or a rule she didn't know about. She felt like she was betraying him somehow, even if it was completely unreasonable. She wasn't doing anything wrong. She had made no promises to anybody. She did what she pleased, just like he did and had done for over sixty years now. Still, she bit her lip anxiously.

Eric took hold of her chin and forced her eyes off the two men. "Do you want to go to them?"

"I probably should."

"Can you handle their scent?"

Only then she remembered where they were. Her eyes narrowed.

What the hell were those two thinking coming here to the parking lot of a vampire owned bar? Had they gone completely nuts while she was away? She scanned the nearby area and noticed one vampire man speaking to a human not so far from where they were standing. It would only take a light wind to carry their scent close enough for the vampire to notice them. An unpleasant chill crept up her spine before anger took over. The careless dimwits were going to get themselves killed.

"Oh I can handle them alright," she muttered and glared at the two.

Eric stepped back. "Stay in a few feet distance. You don't want to me to smell them on you. I'll wait."

She gave him a quick grateful smile, turned on her heel and marched her way across the parking lot growing more irritated by the second. The two of them were standing in the spotlight looking all casual like showing up here was the most natural thing to do. Claude's wicked grin got her blood boiling. How could they endanger themselves like this?

"Hello, beauty queen," Claude's voice drawled as she reached them. "You don't call. You don't write."

"Have you lost your goddamn mind? Do you have any idea how dangerous for you it is to be here?" Lina hissed.

"An inkling."

She glanced around to see if anyone had spotted them yet and then shooed them back towards the nearby park. The few trees could shield them some at least. She sent around a few thankful prayers that the wind wasn't blowing tonight or they would be in so much shit so fast that their heads would spin. Few vampires knew about fairies, but they sure as hell could spot the delicious smelling blood in the air.

When they were in a safe enough distance, she tore at them, "I swear I'm going to beat the living shit out of you if you ever risk your life like this again."

Claude snorted. "Ooh, promises, promises."

"How did you even find me?"

"Believe me, it wasn't easy. Let's just say… we got lucky."

"Lucky for damn sure. What are you doing here?"

Claude gave a little shrug and leered at her. "A better question would be what are you doing, _Aislinn_?" Claude said. His eyes flicked to the man waiting for her by the car. He squinted to get a better look. "Or _who_?"

Frans' mouth twitched at his words. He took a stance right behind his little brother crossing his arms again, but said nothing. He was listening to them, but his attention was drawn across the parking lot.

A quiver of tension shot through her, but she tried her best to ignore it. "This is not a joke, Claude. You playing with your life like this... it's not fucking funny."

"Do you see us laughing? Frans right here is so amused he lost his ability to speak. But relax, Lina. Where's that jest for adventure we all love about you? Come here," he said and opened his arms for a hug, wiggling his fingers.

That was Claude for you - touchy-feely to the amount of creepiness. But no one really complained after they got the feel of his strong arms and his ripped chest pressed against their body. Lina might have copped a feel a few times herself. Okay, more than a few times, but this time she had to shake her head for a no.

"And why is that?" he coyly asked, his eyes twinkling like stars. Oh he was enjoying this. Usually the madder Lina got, the wider his grin grew. Infuriating man with no survival instinct.

"You know why."

His eyes found Eric again. "I see."

"You see nothing, you nut," Lina said.

"I see everything."

Claude's mouth formed a knowing grin that treaded dangerously close to the smirk territory. He never had any issues with her going off on her own and deciding for herself what was a risk worth taking. He never worried for her and definitely never judged. With the insane escapades of his own he could never afford to do that. The gay fairy who worked as an erotic dancer and who had even had his ears surgically altered so he could fit in with human men knew not to throw stones in a house made of glass. Even now, he kept glancing to Eric's direction waggling his eyebrows, probably having some good old naughty thoughts about the man himself.

"Me and my brother boy here were starting to get a little worried about you. And the clock's ticking. Five days left, is it? That's how much time we've got here, princess. You really think we would leave without a word of goodbye, huh? Did you forget about calling or did you only have your hands a little… full?"

Lina felt a little pinch of guilt. "I'm sorry. Things have been a bit crazy here. I did mean to call, but my phone is dead. Don't ask how that happened. And Sookie…" she trailed off.

"Yes. Sookie Sookie Sookie... Did you know that girl of yours carries a shotgun? We went to her place first looking for you and that little firecracker shoved a gun to our faces screeching like a banshee before we got to hello how are yous. And all this while that big brother of hers sat handcuffed to a chair in her backyard. Explain, please."

Lina cracked a smile. "That's my girl. It's a long story."

"Yeah, quite a sight. However you should tell her to be a bit more careful with our light in the presence of strangers. I don't know if she knew what we were, but she was very quick to show us an example of her spark. Even I'm not that sloppy… But I figured she's not really fond of our kind?" Claude asked and cocked an eyebrow.

"Neave and Lachlan paid a visit earlier. You can't blame the poor girl for being a little trigger happy after that."

A hint of worry found its way on his face at last. "Oh."

"Yeah, oh."

"Are you okay? Did they get to you?"

"Pfft I'm fine. No need to worry," she said with a small smile. "Look, as much as I love seeing you two, you have to get going. I'm serious. Please go to Sookie's and explain to her what this is about. Tell her that you can have my room or my cubby, which ever you prefer. She's a very sweet girl after she calms down. Funny, quirky, headstrong, likes to cook, loves sunbathing. You're going to love her. I'm coming to see you as fast as I can, okay? I don't have my phone, but –"

"Who's the man?" Frans' low voice rang. The deep baritone voice that demanded attention.

Lina flinched.

He nodded to her direction, behind her, with his jaw set tight.

Lina turned to see Eric standing a good 250 feet away from them, with his hands in his pockets leaning against the Corvette. He was watching Frans with a calm expression, a small smile playing on his lips, not letting the other man's glower affect him. It was a good thing, although seeing Eric calm did very little to comfort her. Eric could be calm while standing in the middle of a raging gauntlet. She hoped that anything Frans was about to say wasn't going to change that. As she saw him patiently waiting for her, for the first time Lina felt a little protective of him.

"His name is Eric Northman. He's the sheriff of Shreveport area," she explained with her voice a little shy, not wanting to indulge anything more or anything less.

"He's a vampire," Frans stated casually – too casually – like the calm before a storm. He turned his piercing gaze on her for the first time that night.

Claude laughed, sensing the tension in the air and not liking it. "Good grasp on the obvious, brother. I'm glad we worked that out. Should we get going then?"

"An old one?" he asked, ignoring Claude entirely.

"Yes."

"Older than you?"

"By 800 years or so."

"A thousand years old vampire, Lina. What are you doing with him?"

She bit her cheek in agitation. She knew she was going to have to explain who Eric was sooner or later, but she desperately wanted it to be later. Much later. "We'll talk about it tomorrow. You should go. It's late."

"And where do you think you're going if not with us?"

There was a heavy pause. "With him."

Frans lifted his eyebrow. He uncrossed his arms and took a few steps towards her, making her back down. She was stronger than him, but with his height towering over her, she felt cornered.

"It's curious how you blame us of being careless, when you're the one flirting with death," he said.

"It's not like that. I'll explain everything, I swear."

Claude was getting visibly uncomfortable. He cleared his throat in a nervous sort of way, his easy breezy smile all but disappeared. His eyes flicked from Lina to Frans, as if deciding who he should be backing up. Lina silently begged it would be her.

"Not now, Frans," he finally said, placing a hand on Frans' shoulder. "We're not alone here..."

But Frans didn't back down. He stopped only inches from Lina's face, ignoring the man in the other side of the parking lot now shifting in his stance.

"I'm only worried about you and you know it. Why are you doing this?"

"I'll talk about this with you later, or can't you see where we are? Please, try to understand."

"Believe me, I'm trying. So tell me Lina, or help me Gods."

She opened her mouth and closed it again. He loomed over her like a thundercloud and she tried to get out of the situation without anyone getting hurt. She didn't have to look at Eric to know that he wasn't happy with where this conversation was going and she could see the hate Frans had for vampires pouring off of him and directed straight to Eric. Standing between the two fires, she tried to find the words that wouldn't upset either of them, but all words were failing her. And just like she had with Sookie, she blurted out the first thing that came to her mind, "I'm- I'm dating him."

As soon as the words were out, she regretted them.

"You're _dating_ him?" Frans' incredulous voice only proved how ridiculous that sounded.

She could feel Eric's eyes burning into her like her back was as flammable as parchment paper. She knew this was the place he expected her to tell her family just who exactly he was to her. He expected her to acknowledge him in the presence of others and show them what his place in her life was. And he wanted her to do it, not him. When it came to supernatural laws, he had a claim on her and it was about time she started respecting it. She sank her nails into the palms of her hands to fight the feeling of shame that coursed through her like a rolling river.

She closed her eyes for a second and said, "Eric is my mate. Like Matthias is to Isibil."

She didn't have the nerve to stand there with her head up high even when she should have. She saw Frans and Claude grow rigid, their eyes widening. They knew what she meant by mates. They knew her vampire friend in Germany, if only from far. They knew Matthias the Misogynist and Isibil the Brainwashed from her stories. She felt more ridiculous than ever. She took a few steps back and prayed to every god there was that they wouldn't cause a scene. She watched anger roll off of Frans, as his once passive features were consumed by resentment.

"What?" he snarled.

"You heard me."

"Your mate?"

"Yes."

He brought his hands through his hair and looked at her in utter disbelief. And disappointment. _Again_. It was like all she ever did these days was disappointed the people in her life. First Eric, now Frans. _Fantastic_.

"Are you giving him your blood?" he asked.

"It's none of your business."

"You are, aren't you?"

Lina stayed silent.

"Is this another game, Lina? Do you find it thrilling to play with your life like that? Isn't your life exciting enough as it is? You have to go fuck a vampire now?" he hissed through his teeth.

Claude gasped. Lina opened her mouth but said nothing. Her blood rushed hot with anger, tears burning her eyes for the second time tonight as she looked at her friend glaring daggers at her. She refused to cry in front of him.

"Don't you dare," she said.

"Brother, don't go there," Claude said and grabbed Frans' arm. His eyes were fixed behind her, staring at the man now taking a few steps towards them with a snarl on his face, his fangs bared.

"After everything they've done to you, you do _this_ Lina?!" Frans said, but his voice broke. His angry eyes drew her in and she became acutely aware of the pain behind them.

"Don't do this. Not here. Please leave," she whispered.

"I'm not leaving without you."

She heard Eric calling her name, but she couldn't tear her eyes away from her friend, whose brown eyes were swimming with betrayal. _How had they come here?_

"That vampire will kill you, Lina."

"He's about to kill you, if you don't leave," she pleaded him one more time.

"I'm not leaving you here with _a fucking fanger_, do you hear me?!" he shouted. "That's not happening!"

_Those words_.

It was as if he'd hit her.

Her demeanor slowly changed and her face contorted in an all-consuming anger. Her nostrils flared, her eyes flashing and closing into slits.

"I AM A FUCKING FANGER!" she roared. "How conveniently you forget that."

Her breath came in pants, as she waited for him to respond. Her hands closed into fists and she crouched forward, daring him to repeat those filthy words once more.

"You dare disrespect him or me like that again, I'll hurt you. I won't care who you are, and I swear I will," she hissed.

Frans was taken aback for a moment. He looked hurt, but for once Lina didn't care. She knew her words had hurt him more than violence could, but she couldn't bring herself to feel anything close to sympathy.

"I hope you know what you're doing," he whispered and vanished out of sight, teleporting away with a muted sound.

Lina closed her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. Claude looked at her with his amber brown eyes filled with worry and discomfort.

"He didn't mean it and you know that."

She nodded, not trusting her voice anymore.

"You're not a stupid little kid anymore. Of course, you know what you're doing. He's just used to protecting you and now he was caught off guard and reacted." Claude smiled shyly. "Before I go, you should know that blonde bitch from TV is hanging out near Sookie's home. I don't know if she saw Sookie's lightning show earlier today, but let's all lay low, ok? We'll see each other soon. Take care."

Then they were both gone.

Lina took a few calming breaths before walking back to the car. She stared straight ahead, not giving any attention to the whispering around her. If they'd seen Frans and Claude teleport, she didn't care. Soon they would be long gone anyway. Eric's gaze felt heavy on her, as she stopped next to his car and leaned against it. They both stood there for a moment in silence wrapped in their own thoughts.

Lina thought of Frans. How could she not have anticipated what just happened? The two of them had always been best friends and looked after each other. Of course he reacted. But they had never fought like this and never questioned each other's doings. They had never had a reason for it before.

Despite what everybody near them thought they weren't lovers. Sure they had kissed and goofed around their fair share back in 18th century England when the both of them still had a beating heart, but they had never made that final leap. Frans was afraid of her father, who would have never allowed him to touch Lina. Not because of their bloodlines – as cousins they were almost as far apart as Sookie and Lina – but because of her mother's greed and pettiness. Her mother had always had great plans for her, which most certainly didn't involve a man with no apparent power or prominent status among the royal, and her poor father was a man living in his woman's stronghold, giving in to her whims and desires. If her mother hated something, he made it disappear. And boy did she hate Frans.

But what it was worth, Frans never lifted a finger to fight for them and Lina had been too young and wild to care. Frans was her rock and she was his compass, and that was the way it had always been. To fall in love with him would have been the biggest mistake she ever did. It would have been painful, especially now when they were worlds apart. He was leaving and she was staying.

Unlike the man next to her, silently watching her come back to him again.

"I'm sorry you had to see that," she whispered after a while.

"You have nothing to be sorry about." He came to stand in front of her and lifted her face to his. "It seems you can't catch a break these days, little one, can you?"

"I know. I'm pathetic like that," she said and offered him a lopsided grin. Self irony was a friend.

Hearing that he did the strangest thing. He pinched her lips together with his thumb and forefinger, silencing her in his weird, but effective way. She stared back at him in small amusement.

"I'm just glad you're cussing at somebody else than me for a change," he only said.

She snorted, which sounded a bit idiotic with her lips pressed together like that. Her eyes regained a little of their sparkle.

"Let's go," he whispered and ushered her to the car.

* * *

Eric silenced his security system with a long combination of numbers and opened the door to his home. Lina followed him in gingerly, looking around with thousand thoughts running through her mind. The house was big and dark, situated near a forest with the closest neighbor over two miles away. It was peaceful, quiet, and modest enough not to attract attention or lure in unwanted visitors. Then again, whatever happened here would always go unnoticed.

Lina's heels made an attractive clicking sound on the dark wooden floor as she walked in and paused before entering the living room. She turned to see Eric watching her silently with a look on his face she couldn't decipher. He nodded to her to go on.

Even in the absence of light she could see the house was beautiful. The rooms were flush with rich, earthy colors like those from her dreams. Its wide open spaces graced with huge floor to ceiling windows made the rooms flow into each other and the light, gauzy curtains were draped in front of the glass door to the wide terrace. The windows showed to the forest, unabashedly revealing them to the night if they would now click the lights on. She twirled around, noting that everything was decorated in minimalistic style, but the furniture was artfully placed and sensual in appearance. There was some artwork, but none of the pieces could be placed in any specific country or time.

The kitchen looked untouched. No surprise there.

Eric stood in the living room next a large bookcase, his eyes following her every movement as if cataloging all her reactions for later use. Neither of them said anything. He watched as she went through the rooms pawing through things, quietly oohing and aahing, and suddenly stopping in front of a wide space in the living room that looked like it was missing something large. She looked at him quizzically, but he only smiled at her. It was like the space was reserved for some big piece of furniture. Something big like a grande piano… her grande piano. Her piano from the apartment in Paris. She shot him a glare and by the way he was grinning, she guessed she'd gotten it right. For a moment she fought the impulse of throttling him, but instead she drew in a big breath and let it go. That presumptuous bastard would get what was coming to him any day now. She turned her focus on the comfortable looking chairs that were placed before a large TV set. They were the kind you could sink into and then have trouble getting out of. Big enough for two. Those she liked.

What she found weird about the majestic house was that as elegant as it was, it could belong to anyone. No knickknacks, no mementoes, nothing that said Eric to her in any way. That could only mean one thing.

"You don't really live on this floor, do you?" she asked.

He gave her a little grin and a nod of approval.

"No," he said before pushing the bookcase next to him aside. It was a sturdy looking thing and she guessed it required some strength to move it. Maybe vampire strength. From behind it, it revealed another door with a complicated looking lock system next to it.

"Oh, sneaky," she smiled and watched as he pressed his hand on the panel that seemed to read his fingerprints. The lock clicked open.

He opened the heavy door to a staircase that lead down to a long narrow hallway. She waited for him to show her the way, but with a light touch on her back he pushed her forward to the dimly lit stairs. The touch left her with the feel of tingly sparks of electricity. Ladies first.

She descended the stairs in the absolute silence where their footsteps and breathing were the loudest of sounds. When she reached the last step to his underground lair, she was engulfed in warmth. It was here where he had made his home. She could smell his strong lingering scent even in the hallway, where she was surrounded by warm tones of wood, stone and creamy white. Feeling a little uncomfortable walking around his private place with her shoes on, she took off her heels, shrunk back to his chest level and placed them neatly near the stairs. Then, she walked forward and curiously peeked inside the first room to her right. He followed her silently, turning on more lights to fill the darkness.

It was his office. There was an ornate desk with a computer on top and a comfortable looking swivel chair. An old looking clock sat on a desk telling them it was four-thirty in the night - close to sunrise, but none would be wiser while living here on this floor with no windows. His office was filled with little curious things. There was a collection of music in hundreds of LPs and CDs, and a fine looking record player sitting in the corner. Mostly rock and classical. Music from around the world. Scanning the titles she noticed some of them were old favorites of hers, some of them she had never heard of before. The old Irish folk record made her smile. An antique vitrine sat next to the record player filled with tokens from another era of time. The opposite wall was all bookshelves with more books in varying languages than she could read in a year. She could spend forever in that room alone looking into all its secrets.

Never in her most creative thoughts did she see him living this comfortably, in a house as beautiful as this one.

He was waiting for her in the hallway standing in front of two more rooms with closed doors. She was itching to see what was behind them, but he nodded her to go forward.

"Tomorrow," he murmured.

The way he said it, sent a hum of anticipation down her spine. Suddenly it came to her how completely alone they were and that thought had her on pins and needles.

She walked further into his den, through the only opened door in the back. Her bare feet sank into the softest, thickest carpet she'd ever felt and she had to physically stop herself from lying on the floor and running her fingers over it. The room was simple with nice bare walls and soft tones of brown. But she couldn't concentrate on anything else around her. All she saw was the bed.

It sat in the middle and dominated the whole room. It was piled high with pillows and had a large comforter made of thick fur. Even in its lush and softness, it looked intimidating. She could feel Eric's eyes on her back as she stood in front of it twirling her toes nervously. He leaned against the door frame, still as a statue. It was so quiet. She could hear his heavy breathing, only adding to the already charged atmosphere. Defying the compulsion to peek over her shoulder was excruciating.

He had looked and touched every inch of her body, but still she couldn't stop feeling a little tense, when standing in this room, in front of the bed that was going to be theirs. She glanced around. On the far end of the room was a large walk-in closet, almost big enough to be its own room. On the other side it was filled to the brim with clothes in dark tones. His. The other side was empty, waiting to be filled. Hers.

Eric was still standing behind her, unmoving. Lina drew in a deep breath. There was too much power in that moment and she had to break it.

She moved her fingers to the zipper on the side of her dress and pushed it down. The dress dropped to her ankles with a silent sound. She brought her hand through her hair and wound her locks over her right shoulder, revealing her shapely back to his gaze. As she stepped out of the dress, she opened her bra and let it fall next to the bed. Only in her small panties she slowly climbed on top of the comforter and turned to face him, kneeling as she waited.

For a long moment, he just watched her with his eyes heavy with lust.

He brought his hands to his shirt and unbuttoned it one at a time, making Lina shiver under his intense stare.

But she stayed still and waited.

Eric undid his pants and left them in a pile next to her dress. Finally he walked over to her without a thread of clothing, his erection large and impossible to take her eyes off of. She felt the blood rushing between her legs, pulsing eagerly. She almost whimpered both in want and small anxiety, when he lifted his hands to her face and brushed her hair back. It was like he enjoyed torturing her, when he started to braid it in the nape of her neck, showing her ears to him.

He ran his fingers over the would-be pulse point on her throat and travelled down to her shoulders.

"You're nervous," he said in a soft voice. "Why?"

A weak laughter escaped her lips. "I don't know."

He looked into her eyes for a moment, before he suddenly lifted his hand over them. Usually an act like that would make her panic. Her talent depended on eyesight and she was quick to bolt if she abruptly lost it. Not now. She drew in a relaxing breath and leaned into his hand.

"Keep them closed," he said.

She nodded, her lips slightly parted tasting the air, trying to make up for the loss of her sight. Every pore on her body was suddenly alive. She felt his hand leave her face, but she kept her eyes shut, focusing on what it did to her other senses. It forced her to surrender to them and it made her skin hypersensitive to every touch. She jumped a little as she felt him leaning to her neck, tracing the line from her collarbone to her ear.

"How does it feel when I touch you here?" he asked her, following the pointed tip of her right ear.

"Sensitive," she whispered.

"How sensitive?"

"Like our fangs. But more."

His hot tongue came out and did a sweep along the rim, ending at the lobe where he suckled on it, biting lightly with his blunt teeth. She gasped as pleasure shot through her like a lightning. He breathed cool air on his wet trails, sending shivers on her skin.

She took another calming breath. His hands were on her neck now, his muscular fingers kneading her skin in a way that made her stomach knot up and the flesh between her thighs fire up. He gathered her breasts in his hands, cupping them gently. She heard the click of his fangs.

"Lie down," he instructed seductively.

She collapsed on her back into the covers, feeling the crisp of clean sheets beneath her. Her fingers wound themselves into the fur and gripped it hard. She listened to him move around her and had to resist the temptation to peek.

For a moment, it was quiet around her once more. She waited for him, listening to her own labored breathing. It aroused her to no end, when she imagined him standing next to the bed only watching her almost naked body.

She knew from the shifting of the bed that he had joined her. She held her breath, her body poised, singing with awareness and waiting to find out where he was going to touch her next. She felt him adjust himself above her, straddling her body. The feel of his naked skin on her was wreaking havoc on her self control. She heard him breathing, but couldn't feel his hands on her.

She unwound her fingers from the fur and shyly lifted them to where she thought his chest might be, but he pressed her hands back down.

The anticipation was slowly becoming too much. She wanted to squirm and writhe. She wanted to kill the wait, before it killed her. "Please."

She imagined him grinning above her, enjoying this all too much.

Then he touched her. Thank Goddesses he touched her, exploring every inch of her skin with his hands and lips, making her pant with desire. He was unhurried, but merciless. He alternated the pressure with his fingertips, from soft to hard, kneading and stroking her. The touch of his lips was magnified by the darkness, the feel of his fingers running down her chest was almost unbearable. She was the one with her eyes closed, but it was he who caressed her as if he were a blind man wanting to see through touch alone.

There was another shift of the bed as he settled lower. He opened the little bows of her underwear for the second time that night. The fabric loosened and gave away to his hands. She was left bare, but he didn't touch her there. She took slow breaths as he continued his assault on her senses, going down her thighs to her legs. She gasped when she felt his tongue between her toes. Her reflexes told her to fight that ticklish invasion, but the firm grip of his hands kept her from kicking. She struggled to stay still when he took a toe in his mouth and sucked lightly.

"Eric…" she whimpered, as his fingers went back to trailing her calf and inner thigh.

He moved to the next one, his wet tongue licking in between her toes, moving along the most sensitive area. She threw her head back in abandon, her whole body shivering with the addictive combination of sexuality and ticklishness. She never knew that something like this could be so extremely erotic. Being with Eric opened her eyes to a whole new world of sensuality.

His tongue caressed her ankle and calf before he brought his mouth down to her foot again. She fought against squealing out loud when his fangs scraped the instep. She squirmed on the bed and instinctively tried to push herself away from the torturing touches, when he yanked her by the leg, stopping her from escaping. She squeaked in surprise and heard him chuckling.

"Be still."

Slowly he worked her body into needy hysteria. She begged him with no shame and when he finally gave in and caressed her between her thighs, she felt herself coming. He must have been expecting it. The sudden thrust of his two fingers inside her sent her over the edge. She arched her back as the strong current of pleasure rode through her. She screamed until he silenced her with his lips.

"Open your eyes," he ordered, his voice hoarse.

She saw his face above her, him looking deep into her eyes and with a thrust of his hips he entered her. Her pupils dilated. She heard a deep moan of pleasure but wasn't sure if it had escaped from his lips or hers. Her knees hugged his hips as he thrust inside her again. He plunged deep, so deep her body jerked with the impact. His eyes were frenzied, drinking in the sight of her underneath him, on his bed. She made up for the time she had been denied touching him, and her hands roamed over his broad shoulders, muscular back and shapely backside, as his hips moved with hers.

She didn't last long. With an orgasm that rippled through her whole body, she writhed in his embrace and took him with her. He took a strong hold of her hair exposing her neck to him and spilled inside her with a loud groan.

He drank from her. He drank for a long time with big mouthfuls lengthening her bliss.

Before they surrendered to the death, they laid next to each other on their sides, facing one another. She saw him smile to her. A genuine, relaxed smile. It reached through her and did something to her heart, her lungs and body. It pulled at her, tugged deep inside, like a window being drawn open. She had no reason to be afraid of anything anymore.

He spoke to her. "I thought about claiming you tonight. Taking your blood and filling you with mine, watching it take root in you and making you mine for eternity. You seem so ready, why wait," he whispered. "Because this is where I want to do it. On this bed right here."

"Why didn't you?" she asked.

"There're some things I need to decide on before I do. I want you to say a proper goodbye to your family. I saw your face, when you came back to me after seeing your cousins. You should do it tomorrow. Spend some time with them. Then spend some time with Pam. She wants to get to know you. _I _want her to know you."

She smiled to him before her eyelids became too heavy. The sun burned in the horizon.

"Then I will."

* * *

**A/N: I'm sorry that I'm such a slow writer. I know :) I hope you enjoyed the fluffy bits. A rough ride is starting. The next one will have some EPOV at long last and I'm trying to fit in some Pam time!**

**Just so you know I'm rewriting some of the earlier chapters (1-10), but that work is mainly for correcting spelling mistakes and fixing details here and there. The plot stays untouched.**

**Thank you to all the guest reviewers, who I haven't been able to PM!**

**To the reader called _Janni: _Kiitos kaikista aivan ihanista kommenteista jo niin moneen kappaleeseen. Sulla ei oo profiilia täällä ilmeisesti niin en oo pystynyt vastata sulle henkilökohtaisesti, joten teen sen nyt tässä. Mahtavaa tietää, että mulla on lukijoita Suomesta. Jännää jopa! :) Toivottavasti tykkäsit tästä kappaleesta, seuraavat tulee olemaan hieman erilaisia. Pidä mahtava loppukesä sateesta huolimatta!**


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